Usagi and the Kingdom of Pikachu
by Shritistrang
Summary: After their friend Luna has vanished, Usagi and Rei investigate strange happenings around a mysterious lake... and find the entrance to a magical world, where humans live in harmony with mythical animals called Pokémon...
1. The sunken city

Usagi sighed.

She was sitting on a grassy hill, which was situated next to a big lake. All around, she was surrounded by nature. Green hills, lush forests, clean fresh air. It was a sight to behold, and a sight to make a worried soul happy.

Still, Usagi Tsukino was anything but happy. With a frown, she picked up a small stone from the ground and threw it into the deep waters of the lake.

She glanced over to where she could see the rooftop of auntie's house through the branches of the trees.

Her mother thought she would make her children happy when she told them that they would spend the summer vacation away from the busy city, in the country, away from hectic and stress.

She didn't expect her daughter to gasp in shock and plead with her mother to stay home for the vacations.

True, the summer residence of her aunt (in which they were allowed to stay) was situated in the middle of a beautiful landscape, and under normal circumstances, Usagi would be more than happy to hear that she could spend her vacations in a place like this.

But... there was one simple problem. A problem that had to do with her second identity as the sailor suited defender of love and justice, Sailor Moon.

To make it quick: One of her teammates had vanished. That teammate wasn't a powerful fighter like the others, oh no! She wasn't even one of the Sailor Senshi herself. Still, she was a reliable member of the team, and a great friend.

Luna, her advisor and moon cat companion, had disappeared.

It had happened during one of their missions in Juuban. They had fought one of Beryl's old Youmas, a remainder of her old army. Deep below the earth of Juuban, it had been able to gather energy until it was strong enough to challenge even the new-powerful Sailor Team, the Outer Senshi included.

After a hard battle, they finally managed to defeat the monster, but... when they looked around, Luna was gone. Artemis told them that he had searched for cover as soon as the Youma had started shooting around its poisonous spikes, but then his head got hit by something hard and he lost consciousness. So he didn't know where Luna had vanished to either.

To Usagi's parents, it simply looked like their daughter's pet had ran away, and they did the usual stuff in such a case: Printing missing posters with Luna's picture on them and asking the people of the neighborhood if they had seen her.

But Luna remained lost, and even though the Senshi searched the whole city for their black-furred companion, they couldn't find her.

Usagi was devastated, and it took all of her friends' efforts to soothe her.

All of this happened almost a month ago. Usagi and her friends still were searching for the moon cat, but then Ikuko Tsukino informed her family about the big news: Her sister had allowed her and her family to spend the summer vacations in her summer residence, just at the edge of just this lake.

Usagi didn't want to go on vacation while she knew that Luna was still out there. But her mother insisted that the change of scene would do her good and help her to cope with everything. Besides, she felt like Usagi should be old enough to deal with it and live on.

But Luna wasn't just any pet to Usagi. She was her best friend.

While Ami, Rei, Minako and Makoto promised her to keep doing their best to find Luna, Usagi felt as if she was betraying her friend. Now she was sitting here, within this beautiful scenery and her feline friend could be anywhere. Who knows what she had to endure just at this moment?

Sighing deeply, Usagi stood up from the ground. Tonight, she would ask her mother once again if they could go home early. As she did every evening by now. And she wouldn't stop asking until they were back home again.

She picked up one last stone and flung it into the lake. And that's when something strange happened.

For a very short instance, not more than a second, the dark, murky water of the lake became crystal clear and she could see through its waters just like through thin air.

And what she saw at the bottom of the lake was more than enough to distract her from her thoughts and make her wonder about her own sanity.

It was a city.

A big, ancient city with massive stone buildings, tall towers and empty streets.

And then, as quickly as the image had appeared, it was gone again and the lake returned to its previous, murky state.

Usagi rubbed her eyes and stared at the lake once again. But the image stayed the same.

"Okay now..." she muttered to herself. "I really should stop watching those fantasy DVDs Rei gave to me..."

She shook her head. It just had to be her imagination. A sunken city? What could possibly be more weird than that?

The answer came as she turned around to walk back to the house.

It was a very weird-looking, diminutive creature with bluish skin, two stubby little feet and no arms. From its round head, two strange appendages that resembled ears were dangling down, and a third, oval protrusion extended from its forehead. It also had a black tail. And it was standing directly in front of her.

As the creature smirked at her with squinted eyes and a mouth that looked like a zigzag line, Usagi took a step backwards in shock. Had she gone completely crazy by now?

Then the strange being opened its broad mouth and exclaimed one single word:

"Wynaut!"

Afterwards, it turned around and vanished among the bushes.

Several seconds later, Usagi was still standing at the same position, trying to tell herself that whatever she had just seen was nothing but a strange dream.

The proof that it wasn't a dream was just in front of her: A trail of strange, round footprints, that lead directly into the forest...

* * *

On her way back to the residence, Usagi believed more and more that everything she saw had just been a figment of her imagination. That strange gnome she could have easily accepted as some form of unidentified monster, sent by some unknown new enemy.

But a complete city underneath the surface of the lake that is visible only for a short instance?

Even if she considered the transformations, supernatural enemies and time travels she dealt with during her adventures as Sailor Moon, this was a bit too much.

As she reached the house she decided not to talk about this with anyone... not even with her friends, after she would come home. They would most likely laugh at her.

Especially Rei...

"I'm back!" she shouted as she came in and removed her shoes.

A grinning face that was surrounded by long, raven-black hair appeared in the door leading to the living room. "Welcome back... meatball head!"

Usagi looked back at her friend and teammate in surprise.

"REI!"

* * *

Shortly afterwards, they were all sitting together in the living room. Usagi realized with surprise that Rei hadn't come alone... her grandfather was sitting next to her mother and sipped from a cup of tea.

"When I told Grandpa that you're spending your vacation here," Rei spoke up. "He remembered that the priest of the nearby temple is an old friend of his, and so he decided that the two of us could use a little time away from our duties as well... so we packed our things and came!" She smiled.

Usagi smiled back. She was really glad to have one of her friends around, one who she could speak with. With only her parents and the pesky little Shingo around (okay, he can be a nice brother every now and then), the time at the lake had been really boring and bothersome for the blonde girl.

Grandfather Hino took a sip from his cup. "I've been here several times," he explained. "But not nearly quite as regularly as back when I've been a young lad." He chuckled. "Koji and I used to do all kind of wild stuff those days. We were swimming in the lake, exploring the forests and looking for the spirits."

Usagi blinked. "The spirits?"

"Oh, didn't you know?" The old man put down his cup. "The people living around here have all kinds of stories that there are many strange creatures living around here, nature spirits, yokais and ghosts." He chuckled. "Back when I was a young boy, I believed everything, of course. Nowadays... well, let's just say: We all don't know what's out there, do we?" He picked up his cup and took another sip.

Usagi's father laughed. "Well, Shingo, you gotta be careful then. You don't want one of those yokais to come and get you, right?"

"Hah, hah, very funny..." the young boy muttered.

"Please, Grandpa... we decided that on this vacation, we wanted to stop thinking about spirits and such," Rei sighed. "The people that live around here are creepy enough..." She shuddered.

"Why, Rei-chan?" Usagi's mother asked. "Did you meet anyone in particular?"

"Well... there was this strange boy I ran into yesterday, right after we arrived. He was wearing tattered clothes, and his face was dirty..."

Ikuko raised her eyebrows. "Is that alone a reason to call someone creepy?"

"That's not it," Rei tried to explain. "You know... he acted weird. I was strolling through the forest, eating one of the sandwiches we brought from home, and I accidentally dropped the wrapping. I just wanted to go and pick it up, when suddenly, this guy stood in front of me. He yelled at me in some strange language I didn't understand... and then he gestured at the wrapping. I think he was upset that I dropped it to the ground. You know, I tried to explain that I dropped it by accident, but he wouldn't listen... I don't know if he even understood me. In the end, he picked up the wrapping by himself and left without saying another word. But he threw me such an angry glare... He acted as if I had committed some sort of crime."

"Ah yes, I think that was Ash," Grandfather Hino nodded. "My friend Koji told me all about him... he's supposed to be an orphan that lives nearby, with his foster parents. He's a foundling, you know?"

"A... foundling?" Usagi wondered.

Hino nodded. "Yes, his foster parents found him in the woods a few months ago. He was wearing some strange clothes and only spoke a very old dialect most of the people around here didn't understand. When they realized that the boy didn't have a home, they adopted him."

"But why did he act like this?" Rei wondered.

"Well, they say that Ash loves nature like nobody else. He spends most of his time running through the woods, searching for animals or sitting atop trees. You don't want to know how often he has driven his foster parents crazy by bringing home forest animals that have been hurt." He took another sip. "If there's one thing he can't stand, it's people who pollute the environment."

"I see..." his granddaughter murmured. "And when I dropped the bread wrapping, he believed I did it intentionally..."

"Well, I hope this boy won't come near this house," Ikuko said. "I don't want my children to hang around with such a boy."

"He's not a bad guy," Grandfather Hino explained. "He's just not used to human civilization as we know it. Some people believe he was being raised by animals."

Usagi's father laughed. "Some sort of modern Mowgli, huh?"

"Something like that," Hino shrugged. He put his cup down again. "My, this was simply delicious, Ikuko! You have to tell me the name of this brand."

"Why, thank you!" Usagi's mother beamed. "I'm glad you liked it. Would you like another cup, Hino-san?"

The old man shook his head. "No, I have to politely decline. My friend is waiting for us back at his home, and I don't want to keep him waiting." He stood up. "Rei, are you coming?"

"Aw, you're leaving already?" Usagi whined.

Rei smiled. "Sorry, wish I could stay for longer... but I'll come over tomorrow, promise!"

"Why don't you sleep here, Rei-chan?" Ikuko asked. "There are two beds in the room where Usagi is sleeping... my sister has twin daughters, you know? You could share the room. Um, that is, if that is fine with your grandfather."

Grandfather Hino shrugged. "I don't mind. I know she will be fine in your care, Tsukino-san."

Rei and Usagi smiled at each other. "Great!" Usagi cheered. "It's gonna be like a pajama party!"

Shingo rolled his eyes. "Girls... go figure..." he muttered. Usagi simply growled at him.

Rei's grandfather stood up. "Oh well, I have to leave. Perhaps I will come for a visit very soon... this tea is just too tasty." He grinned. "And perhaps I can tell you some more stories my friend told me about this region. Like the story of the hidden labyrinth... or about the city in the lake."

The others laughed, but Usagi felt a chill crawling up her spine. What did he say? City in the lake?

Right after Grandfather Hino had left, Usagi excused herself and Rei, and she dragged her friend to the room she was sleeping in. She then closed the door.

"What's the hurry, Usagi?" the raven-haired Shinto priestess asked. "You look worried. Is it about Luna? I'm sorry, but we still couldn't find a trace of her..."

Usagi shook her head. "This isn't about Luna..." she said. "But after hearing what your grandfather just said... I have to tell you something."

"What is it?" Rei asked as they sat down on the two beds.

Usagi gulped. "You know, either I'm going nuts or something big is going on. You... you won't believe what I saw earlier, when I was at the lake..."

After Usagi had finished telling her friend the story about the city in the lake and about the weird, blue creature, Rei was sitting on the edge of her bed and frowned.

"This is all... very strange, Usagi," she finally said.

"You don't believe me..." Usagi muttered. "Well, I already thought so..."

Rei shook her head. "That's not it! I do believe you, that's what makes the whole situation so strange. If there really is a sunken city at the bottom of the lake, and you met a creature like that, it means there has to be some truth in those old stories from Grandpa's friend."

"Well, we could always go and ask him what else he knows," Usagi suggested.

"Good idea, but first, there's something else we could do."

"What do you mean?" the blonde girl asked.

"Well, Grandpa's friend also told us about some old ruins on top of the biggest hill around here... He said they're the remains of some old, feudal castle. Maybe we find some clues up there. If not, we can always ask Grandpa for details."

Usagi nodded. "Yeah, sounds like a plan to me. So..." Her face suddenly turned all worried. "You guys found any clues regarding Luna?"

"No, I'm sorry," Rei sighed. "At least nothing outstanding. Ami has found some weird hairs lying on the ground near the place where Artemis got knocked out, and she wanted to analyze them with the Mercury Computer. She said she wanted to call me as soon as she finds out more." She put an arm around her friend. "Don't worry! We'll find her, sooner or later."

"I really hope so..." the blonde murmured.

Suddenly, the voice of her mother interrupted their thoughts. "Girls, time for dinner!"

"Oh yummy!" Usagi shouted as she jumped up from the bed. "I wonder if we're gonna have those dumplings she brought from home."

Rei chuckled. "Well, good to see that all of this doesn't seem to spoil your appetite. You're still as gluttonous as ever."

"Rei, stop being a meanie!" Usagi grumbled.


	2. Chase through the darkness

The next day, the two girls got up early. They hurried to get ready and had a short breakfast before the rest of the Tsukino family. When Ikuko asked in a surprised voice where they were going in such a hurry, her daughter simply told her they wanted to go for a walk around the woods.

Ikuko seemed happy that her daughter finally seemed to perk up, now that one of her friends was with her.

The girls left the house and walked through the forest, until they reached the bottom of the biggest hill that was rising over the lake.

Usagi listened to the nice sounds of the wind and the birds, but then this idyllic orchestra got interrupted by a loud noise coming from behind the hill.

"What is that?" she shouted in surprise. "Sounds like machines."

Rei nodded. "Yeah, Mr. Moroto - Grandpa's friend - already told us that they are building an expressway nearby."

Usagi couldn't help but feel anxious. "All of this noise... won't it scare the local animals away?"

"Well, there's nothing we could do about it. It looks like that construction company already got the permission from the local authorities. They still had to adjust the path for their expressway, because of the castle. From what Mr. Moroto said, I believe the people were worried that the construction works would endanger the old ruins. I can't say I'm too happy about it either..."

"I agree," Usagi nodded. "Aren't there enough expressways already? I mean, people could always come here by train."

"Well, as I said, there's nothing we can do about it," Rei said. "Come on, let's check out the ruins! I'm really curious what the old castle looks like from the inside."

* * *

After entering the ruins, they realized that not much of the old building was standing anymore, except for parts of the main building. They climbed into the big courtyard through a small chasm in the ruined wall around the castle.

"Um, Rei? Can we just go in here like that? I mean, isn't this ruin landmarked or something?"

"True, but as long as people don't leave too much garbage behind or do anything that would damage the old walls even further, this place is free to visit for everyone."

Usagi clumsily stumbled over a big pile of boulders. "Do you really believe that we can find something about the city I saw in here?"

"I think so," her friend nodded. "This is the oldest building around here. If there would be other clues around the lake, they probably have already been taken to some museum."

"Let's ask Mr. Moroto and your grandpa about that later," Usagi said. "Oh, wow! Would you look at those pillars? I wonder how old they are..."

They searched around the ruined place for a while, but couldn't really find anything that would help them any further.

"Well," Rei sighed. "I really didn't expect anything else. Still, it was worth a try... and seeing this place has been worth it anyways, huh?"

"You can say that again," Usagi nodded. "There aren't such things in the big city, that's for sure."

They walked back through the big hall of the castle (of which only two walls were remaining), but before they reached the courtyard, Rei suddenly stopped and pulled her friend behind a wall.

"What? What's up?" Usagi asked.

"Ssshhhh," Rei hushed. "There's someone there..."

The two girls carefully peered around the corner to take a closer look at the figure that was standing right in the middle of the courtyard... and luckily, it wasn't looking in their direction.

But they were surprised to see that this was not a human... it was a creature that looked even stranger than the bluish gnome Usagi had seen the previous day.

It kinda resembled a large rodent, about as big as a dog, with yellow fur and a striped back. It's tail had a strange zigzag shape, and there were two red patches on its cheeks. It sniffed around the air, but didn't seem to notice the two of them.

"That's one strange animal," Rei whispered. "But that's not the one you saw, right, Usagi?"

Usagi shook her head. "See? I told you there would be strange creatures living in these woods."

"I have to admit, this is amazing," Rei mumbled. "We've seen Youmas, Droids and all kinds of other monsters before, but this thing... it looks so gentle. Unlike all of the other non-human creatures we met."

"You think he's looking for some food?" Usagi whispered.

"Usagi... how would you know that it's a male?"

"Um, I dunno..." She scratched her head. "He looks like it..."

The priestess sighed. "Never mind..."

Suddenly, the strange animal's head turned around, as someone else entered the courtyard. It was a boy, younger than Usagi and Rei, and he wore tattered jeans and a dirty shirt.

"That's that Ash kid I met the other day," Rei said in bewilderment. "What's he doing here?"

"It looks like they know each other," Usagi noticed.

She was right, the yellow animal was greeting the boy in some weird language neither of the girls could understand. Ash replied in the very same language, and then he gestured eastwards, where they could hear the noises from the construction site.

The yellow creature seemed to be angry because of something, because it growled, and for a short instance, Usagi believed she could see some sparks dancing around its cheeks.

The boy then said something in a harsh voice, which was accompanied with a resolute gesture. The creature lowered its head and nodded, then it walked over to a big pile of rubble.

Ash followed it, and then... they were gone.

Usagi blinked. "Huh? Did I miss anything? Where did they go?"

"I'm not too sure..." Rei mumbled. "But let's be careful anyway... They could still be around. And while that creature looked somewhat cute, it also seems to possess some strange powers."

They slowly tiptoed over the rubble-covered floor of the courtyard, until they reached the big pile of stones behind which Ash and his strange little companion had vanished.

Rei took a deep breath, exchanged a quick look with Usagi, and then the two girls nodded and stepped around the rubble.

And gazed upon the rectangular hole that was in the ground.

Usagi peered inside. "Wow, that's pitch black," she said. "I can't see anything. Not the boy and not his little animal pal."

"Who knows what's down there..." Rei muttered. "But still, if Ash knows something about those creatures, we should probably go after him. I'd really like to ask him some questions..."

"But it's so dark in there," her friend whined. "How will we see anything?"

"Calm down, you're not a crybaby, are you? Let's transform and I can use my fire powers to light the way. Ready?"

"O-okay," Usagi muttered and grasped her brooch.

"MOON CRISIS, MAKE UP!"

"MARS CRYSTAL POWER, MAKE UP!"

And after transforming into their Senshi forms, they nodded at each other with determination and dropped through the hole in the floor, first Sailor Mars, followed by Sailor Moon.

* * *

The drop wasn't too deep, but after both Sailor Senshi had landed in the dark cave underneath the ruin and looked up, they saw that the hole was too far up above their heads, so a normal human being shouldn't be able to reach it without the right tools.

Lucky thing they could always use their Senshi powers to boost their jumps and reach the hole easily.

Mars summoned a tiny flame that was hovering over the palm of her hand, and they looked around. The room wasn't very big, and there was only one exit: A small doorway directly in front of them. They could hear voices in the distance.

"Looks like we'll still be able to catch up with them," Rei said. "Let's hurry!"

"You think this is a good idea?" Sailor Moon whined in a small voice. "It's creepy down here..."

"Stop whining and get moving," Mars snapped in an irritated tone of voice. "Really, sometimes I wonder if all those battles we had in the past actually had some impact on you... you still behave like a five-year-old at times. Now hurry! I'm really curious where this leads."

"Really?" Usagi muttered. "Well, not me..."

They walked through the doorway and found themselves in a narrow corridor with a very low ceiling. A little bit lower, and they would hit their heads when standing upright. Mars went ahead with her light, and Moon followed her meekly.

The walls were covered with strange-looking engravings, but they had no time to look at them more closely. They just followed the voices in front of them.

Suddenly, they were standing at a crossway. "Now where did they go?" Mars muttered and looked from one corridor to the other.

Moon looked right, where she believed to see a dim flicker of light. She also thought she heard the voices coming from there. "I think they're over there!" she shouted. Quickly, the two Senshi followed the right path.

But very soon after that, the voices were dying down, and the flicker of light vanished.

"We'll never catch up with them like this..." Rei muttered. "Hopefully, there aren't too many of those corridors down here..."

A few minutes later, they reached yet another junction.

"Which way?" Usagi asked.

Rei thought about it for a while, then she gestured right again "That way! If we always go in one direction, we'll surely find the right way."

Usagi wasn't so sure about that, but she followed her teammate all the same.

While they were walking, Rei held her flame close to the walls. "Would you look at those engravings?" she muttered. "I wonder how old those corridors are..."

Usagi just wanted to reply something, when they entered a circular cave with no less than six various exits.

"Oh, now what?" Usagi whined.

Rei came to a stop and frowned. "This is a downright labyrinth..." she murmured. "We should have brought a compass or something like that..."

She looked at the various doorways that were leading out of the room. Every single one looked the same. "Getting out of here won't be easy," she sighed.

Usagi sat down on the ground. "Whatever, I need a break... we've been walking for hours now..."

"Don't be silly, it has just been 30 minutes, more or less."

"Still..." the moon princess griped. "I'm tired and hungry. Let's rest for a while... please?"

Rei groaned. "For all I care... Fine, we seem to have lost them anyway." She sat down next to Usagi and let her flame hover next to her. She smirked. "I learned to do that trick last week, you know?"

Usagi wondered if she or the other Senshi would be able to do similar things with their powers, but she was too hungry to think about it.

She reached for her pocket, but realized that her Senshi fuku didn't have any pockets. "Now where did that bag of jelly beans go that I brought with me?" she wondered.

She searched through her subspace pocket from which she always pulled her Moon Rod and other Senshi tools, and smiled when she was able to pull out her jelly beans.

"Want one?" she asked and offered the bag to her friend after opening it.

Rei shook her head. "No, thanks. I'm still thinking about a way how we'll get out of here without getting lost..."

Usagi shrugged, then took a green jelly bean and put in in her mouth.

Rei was stumped. If all corridors looked the same, how would they even realize that they wouldn't walk through the same ones again and again? What they needed was something to mark the paths they came from...

Her gaze fell upon the colorful jelly beans within Usagi's grasp, and suddenly she got an idea.

She quickly snatched the bag out of her friend's hands and jumped to her feet. "Hey!" Usagi shouted. "Don't hog them all for yourself!"

"Usagi, that's it! I finally know how we can avoid getting lost," the Senshi of Mars shouted in excitement.

"Really?" Sailor Moon asked. "Um, how?"

"With your jelly beans! Here, look!" Rei took one of the sweets out of the bag and placed them next to one of the six doorways. "See? We'll just take this way, and if we ever come here into this room again, we'll know that we've been here already."

Usagi was amazed. "Rei, you can be ingenious sometimes, you know that? Even Ami wouldn't have come up with a great plan like that."

Rei smiled proudly. "Right! Now, let's get out of here!"

While they were running down the corridor, Usagi suddenly smirked. "You know, we wouldn't be able to get out of here if I hadn't brought the jelly beans."

They ran through the darkness, heading into various directions once they reached other junctions. Every time they did that, Rei placed one of the colorful jelly beans down at the floor. Sometimes, they reached a dead end and had to go back the way they came, and sometimes they reached junctions they had passed previously. In such a case, they would take a way where Rei didn't drop a jelly bean before and continue on their way.

After about half an hour, they still couldn't find an exit. "I don't believe it," Rei grumbled. "How big is this labyrinth?"

"Rei, look!" Usagi gestured ahead. The corridor they were following suddenly ended at a doorway that was bigger than the ones they had passed previously. It's frame was decorated with old paintings of strange animals.

Curiously, the two girls entered a big hall that was lying behind the doorway. Two big, but dark candelabras were standing next to a big stone block that resembled an altar.

Rei moved her light around. All over the walls, they could see the same gravures that were also covering the corridor walls.

"Incredible..." Rei whispered. "What is this place?" She went closer to the wall. "Those signs... what are they supposed to be? Some old hieroglyphics?"

Usagi stood next to her and looked at the wall as well. "You know, those look very much like regular letters. Look, if you take that one and erase the weird circle with the dot in the middle... it almost looks like an 'M', does it?"

Rei gasped in surprise. "You're right! But what people would write with such strange letters?" She looked over the writings in confusion. "Every single letter has this weird circle with the dot inside. Let's see if I can translate it..."

She squinted her eyes. It was difficult to decode the strange letters with only her dancing flame as a source of light.

"O-U-R W-O-R-D-S S-H-A-L-L R-E-M-A-I-N H-E-R-E F-O-R T-H-E A-G-E-S." she translated the first sentence. She scratched her head. "Strange... I wonder what that means."

"Rei, look here!" Usagi was standing next to the altar and gestured at the strange item lying on top.

Rei walked over to her and looked down at the weird, spherical item. It was about as big as a tennis ball and its top half was colored red and its lower half white. There was also a small button-like contraption on its front.

Usagi picked up the ball. "Weird! What do you suppose this is?" she asked her friend.

"Wait!" Mars suddenly shouted. "Don't touch the button!"

"Huh? What?" Sailor Moon asked in confusion. Unconsciously, her fingers closed around the ball and pressed the button...

With a slight 'click', the two halves of the strange ball opened up.

Usagi gasped.

"Oh no! Now I've broken it!"

Her fellow Senshi sighed. "You haven't broken it, it seems to open when someone presses that button." She took the empty contraption out of her friend's hand. "Still I wonder who would put something like that down here... and what's stored within such a thing at all?"

She looked closer at the ball. It seemed kinda old, with a scarred surface and a squeaky joint. Rei shrugged. "Who knows for how long this thing has been lying down here... Still, we should take it with us. Maybe Ami can tell us more about it, when we take it back home."

They looked around the room. "Well, as there's no other exit in here, I think we should go back and try to find another way."

"Yeah, okay!" Usagi nodded.

They went back through the dark corridor until they reached the last junction. But when they looked down at the ground, they gasped.

"The jelly bean!" Usagi shouted. "It's gone!"

"You're right! Damn, what now? I can clearly remember that I put it down there."

"That... means we have to go the other way now, right?" Usagi asked, a little bit uncertainly.

Rei nodded. "Yeah, but I wonder... jelly beans don't simply vanish into thin air. If there's someone around here who sabotages our only lead back to the surface, we're done for."

She then snarled. "I bet it's that kid with his yellow-furred friend. Maybe they're sitting just around the corner and have the time of their life, laughing at us, while we walk around like two dopes without a clue."

The two Sailor Senshi ran into the other corridor and followed it for a while, until they once again entered the circular room with the six doorways.

"Well, here we are again..." Sailor Moon sighed.

Mars checked the other doorways. "There are still some jelly beans left, but I know I dropped more of them in this room. There has to be someone down here who picked them up. Just why..."

"Hey, Mars!" Moon suddenly spoke up. "Do you hear that?"

Rei listened. And she could hear something, coming out of one of the tunnels. It sounded like the snuffling and panting of some animal, almost like a...

"A dog?" Usagi wondered. "How did a dog get down here?"

"I dunno," Rei replied. "Perhaps it's just a stray dog that fell down the hole in the ruins."

The snuffling and panting came closer, and they looked towards the doorway where it came from... one of those, where one of Rei's jelly bean markings were still lying.

But only until the wet, slobbery tongue of the dog slurped it up and pulled it back into its muzzle. It wasn't Ash who had taken the jelly beans... it was the dog.

The dog?

The more the two Senshi were looking at the four-legged creature standing in front of them, the more they were convinced that this was anything else... but not a dog!

It's fur was as black as the night, and it had three bony white protrusions growing on its backside, looking almost like the ribs of a skeleton. Another bony protrusion was circling its long, slender neck, just like a necklace. Two long, curved horns were rising from its skull.

The beast was bigger than a doberman, and it bared its teeth while snarling dangerously at the two girls. Saliva was dropping from its jaws and onto the cavern floor.

"Wha... wha... wha..." Sailor Moon muttered in fear. "What's that?"

"I don't know, but it doesn't look too friendly," Mars grumbled. "Looks like it's itching for a fight."

Indeed, the monstrous dog-creature's snarling increased in volume, while the beast lowered its head, preparing to pounce.

But Sailor Mars was faster. "Burning Mandala!" she shouted, and the fiery rings flew from her hands, at the monster.

The creature flinched in surprise as the fire singed its fur. Angrily, it shook its head.

And then... it simply looked back at the two girls and continued to advance.

"Wh-what?" Mars gasped in surprise. "How's that possible? It simply took my attack like... like it was a simple blow to the face."

Usagi felt very nervous. "Rei... maybe we should leave it alone." The stare that dark beast was throwing her gave her the creeps.

For once, Rei agreed with her blonde friend. "Right... maybe... maybe it will leave us alone once we leave."

They turned around and blindly chose one of the doorways. They didn't know where it would lead... but they didn't mind at that moment. If only they would get away from that creepy dog.

But their hopes were squashed as soon as they heard the angry bark of the monster, and its growling and panting, as it ran after them.

"Maybe... maybe we can confuse him by taking different ways," Usagi suggested while she stumbled through the darkness.

"He'll track us down with his nose, I'm sure," Rei shouted back. "Besides, if we lose each other now, we might lose sight of each other as well."

Only once dared Usagi throw a glance backwards to their pursuer, but she wished she didn't do it. The image of the savage beast, how it ran after them with bared teeth only made her scream in fright.

They had fought many monsters before, various creatures that were even more frightening than this one. But now they were alone, without their friends, and Mars' attack really didn't seem to faze the beast. In addition, they've been stumbling through the darkness for at least an hour, and in that condition, most people would likely react like this.

When Usagi believed to feel the hot breath of the creature on her neck, she yelled: "WHAAAAAAAAH! He's closing in on us!"

"Quick, this way!" Rei shouted and pulled her friend into a side tunnel.

Just as Usagi stumbled after her friend, the dark body of the beast shot past them like a living cannonball.

"Hurry!" Rei grunted. "He'll be after us again soon enough."

"But where should we go?" Usagi whined.

She was right... there was no way out of this situation. They had to fight. As long as they couldn't find the exit, and the monster could find them, they would never be able to escape.

"Well, we simply have to win! That's all, right?" Rei tried sounding confident, but failed miserably.

Usagi didn't feel any better. She saw how Rei's fire attack didn't work on that creature. Hopefully her own attacks would be more efficient...

She gulped when she heard a loud snarl echoing through the darkness. It sounded awfully close...

She leaned over to her friend's ear and whispered: "Do you suppose he..."

And then she could only yelp in surprise, as something grabbed both her and Rei and pulled the two of them backwards.

Usagi instantly wanted to defend herself against the unknown assaulter, but a whispering voice hissed: "Be quiet! If he hears us, it's all over. Those beasts can almost hear as good as they can smell."

Because it sounded like this person, whoever it was, wanted to help them, Sailor Moon calmed down and simply nodded. She threw Rei a sidewards glance and saw that she didn't move.

Suddenly, it occurred to her that their unknown savior had pulled them backwards... but there had been no corridor behind them. Just the solid wall.

"How did..." she started.

"Quiet now! Here he comes!"

And Usagi watched how the fearsome image of the black beast came walking past their hiding place, wherever this was. He growled angrily and even looked into their direction, so that Usagi feared he would pounce on them every second.

But after a while, the creature snorted and walked away. Its panting died away, until it was gone.

"I think we can go out now," the stranger whispered. "He's gone now."

"Th-thanks," Usagi nodded and stepped back into the corridor. Rei and the other person followed her. Confused, Usagi looked at the wall behind her and pushed against it. Solid rock.

"How... how did you do that?" she whispered and tried seeing the face of their savior. But it was way too dark, and during the wild chase, Rei's light had gone out.

"Oh, just a simple trick," the boy (was it a boy?) shrugged. "I already know how to deal with those guys."

"But what in the world is that thing?" Mars asked. Her heart was still pounding. "I've never seen anything like it before."

"A Houndoom! Nasty fellows, and persistent as well. You're lucky I was nearby. A little bit closer, and he would have had you for lunch."

"Who are you anyway?" Rei asked. "Are you that boy, Ash...?"

"We should go now," the stranger said without reacting to her question. "I might have confused him, but he might come back. And there are others like him. You shouldn't have come here in the first place. This is not a good place for your kind."

He walked ahead and waved them. "Here, come this way! Or do you want to play tag with the Houndoom again?"

He had a point, and so the two Senshi decided to keep their questions for later.

Their guide - they still couldn't see him very clearly - lead them through the labyrinth. Without hesitating even once, he chose a certain path until they reached a long passageway. At its end, they could finally see light.

Usagi and Rei breathed sighs of relief and picked up their pace.

When they stepped out into the sunlight, they felt as if they would have spent an entire month under the earth. It was true that the natural habitat of humans was above the earth, not underground.

"Go down the hill and you'll reach the village," the stranger said. "It's not far, just go straight ahead."

"Sure," Sailor Moon nodded and turned around. "And I want to thank you again for..."

She stopped in mid-sentence. There was no one that could have listened to her. She and Rei were the only two persons standing there.

And on top of that, there wasn't even a tunnel, a cave entrance or something similar where they could have come from. Behind them, they could only see a smooth stone surface, without any cracks or other visible openings.

She then remembered what the stranger had said to them: 'This is not a good place for YOUR KIND.'

"Sailor Moon..." Mars mumbled. "I said it and I'll say it again: Something very, very strange is going on here..."


	3. The mounted warrior

Some time later, Rei and Usagi were back in their civilian forms, walking back to the residence where the Tsukino's were staying.

"You're right, Rei..." Usagi murmured. "All of this... is too strange. But..." She looked up at the top of the hill, where they knew the ruined castle to be. "Even more than that, I wonder just what those creatures are... and I wonder what Ash and his friend are up to."

"Yes," Rei nodded. "They seemed to be pretty agitated. And then this guy who saved us..." She sighed. "I wonder who it really was."

"Now what are you doing here?" a sudden voice startled them.

They turned around to see an old man wearing a priest's robe standing behind them, slightly taller than Rei's grandpa, with a grey beard that was hanging down to his stomach.

"Moroto-san!" Rei sighed in relief. "You startled us."

"I'm sorry! But still, I wonder what two young girls like you are doing out here this late."

He was right, it had become pretty dark. While both Usagi and Rei didn't have a watch with them, they realized that it had to be early evening, as the sun was slowly starting to set. They must have spent more time down in the labyrinth than they thought.

"Oh, we were just walking through the forest," Rei explained. "And we kinda lost track of time."

"I see..." the old man nodded. Then he looked at what Rei was holding in her hand. "And what do you have there?"

Rei looked down at the strange ball they had found within the labyrinth. Even though she had hold onto it for all that time, she almost forgot about it. "Oh, that... We... we found it up in the castle."

"You took it from there?" Mr. Moroto almost seemed alarmed.

"I thought it's allowed to go in there," Usagi spoke up.

The old man looked at her. "You must be Rei's friend, huh? Yes, you're right, it's allowed to enter the ruined castle. However... it's not allowed to take anything from there."

He then smiled at the two girls. "But I don't have to tell anyone about this, right? How about you just give that to me, and I won't tell anyone."

Rei hesitated. This ball might be the only clue they had. But her grandfather's friend wanted to cover up for them... so she had to be grateful, right?

She handed the ball over to him. He smiled. "Thank you! I'll make sure to hand it over to the proper authorities."

"What do you think this is, anyway?" Usagi asked.

"This?" Mr. Moroto looked down at the ball. "Oh, I'm not too sure... looks like some sort of container, don't you think? But then again, I'm not a historian, so I wouldn't know." He laughed.

"Moroto-san..." Rei spoke up. "You know, we're actually very interested in that old ruin up there... you know much about this region, so can you tell us more about it?"

Moroto looked up to the top of the hill. Then he nodded. "I guess I can do that. But not today. It's getting dark, you see? Your grandfather already told me that you're gonna spend the night with your friend, so why don't the two of you go back before this young lady's parents are starting to worry?"

The two girls weren't too satisfied with that, but they sighed and nodded. If this nice old man was already willing to tell them what he knew, they had no reason to wait until tomorrow, right?

They bid Mr. Moroto farewell and returned to the residence.

Usagi's mother was already waiting for them. "Finally," she shouted as they entered the house. "I was starting to worry!"

"Yeah, we kinda lost track of time," Usagi apologized. "Sorry about that!"

But her mother shook her head. "Not because of that! I know it's your vacation, after all. It's because of that explosion."

Usagi and Rei were confused. "What explosion?"

"Don't tell me you didn't hear it," Shingo said from where he was sitting. "We could even hear it over here, although it was on the other side of the big hill."

"It came on TV," Usagi's father added. "They said that it happened on the construction site of that speedway they are building. What is strange, as the foreman showed to the reporters that they wouldn't use any explosives at all."

"An explosion at the construction site...?" Usagi murmured.

She and Rei exchanged a quick glance, and both of them were pretty sure that they were thinking the same: Ash and his little animal friend had been looking over to the construction site when they saw them inside the ruin. Maybe their intentions weren't peaceful at all...

After going back into their room, they decided to pay the ruined castle another visit in the morning. If Ash and that creature would appear again, they would face them. And then they would have to give them some answers.

* * *

Koji Moroto was slowly walking back to his temple. The sun had vanished behind the horizon, and the full moon was the only light that was illuminating the path.

Just before he reached the temple, however, he turned around and looked at one of the trees surrounding his home. "You can come out now!"

A black-haired boy with a dirty shirt and tattered jeans stepped out from behind the tree. "Did you get it?" he asked.

Moroto nodded and handed the red and white ball over to Ash. "Here you are! And next time, be more careful! The two girls almost died in there!"

"Well, they shouldn't have spied on us," the boy grumbled. "Our plans are far too important to be disturbed by two meddlesome girls!"

The old man closely looked into the youngster's face. "Is there really no other way to do this?"

"If there were, I wouldn't do this, you know that!" Ash gestured in the direction of the construction site. "I would leave them alone if they would only harm nature... what is a crime on its own. But those people... they are destroying the Alph Corridor! And I won't let that happen!"

* * *

"All of this doesn't add up..." Rei murmured. "I mean, it's pretty obvious that Ash... or at least someone he knows... is responsible for what happened at the construction site. But what do they have against it? Is it just because they want to protect nature? And what about that labyrinth? You'd think people living around here would know if there's a hidden maze underneath the ruined castle and strange creatures living around."

"Yeah, I get what you mean," Usagi nodded. "Auntie wouldn't have allowed us to stay at her summer residence if she knew about those creatures. And she and her family visit this place very often... I bet she would have noticed by now."

"We have to go back to the ruin tomorrow," Rei decided. "We have to find out what's going on here. There are human lives at stake here."

Usagi sighed. "I wish the others were here... but someone has to look for Luna. I'd still prefer to go and search for her, but as we're here now..."

"Right," Rei nodded. "We have to make most of this situation. Maybe tomorrow we'll find out more."

* * *

And just like they planned, they once again left early in the morning the following day, after a short breakfast.

Ikuko looked after her daughter and her friend in confusion. "Strange! Since when did Usagi turn into such a nature lover? She has always been a city child, if you know what I mean."

Her husband Kenji chuckled. "Well, maybe sitting in the house all time is getting way too boring for her tastes."

"That might be it," Ikuko nodded. She then threw an angry glare towards her son, whose fingers were busy with his Gameboy. "If only other children of mine would do the same."

"Quiet, you're breaking my concentration," Shingo mumbled. Ikuko simply shook her head.

* * *

The ruin looked just as it did the day before. Usagi looked around before going in. "No dirty kid or strange animal around," she finally said. "Shall we take a look around?"

"In a minute," her black-haired friend replied. "I just wanna check up something..." And she walked around the pile of rubble behind which she knew the entrance to the labyrinth to be.

"You wanna go down there again?" Usagi gasped. "I think I saw enough the last time."

"No," Rei said. "I just wanna see if Ash and Co. might already be down there... Um... wait a second... WHAT?"

"What, what's up?" Usagi asked as she followed her friend around the rubble.

Rei gestured down to the hole. "Look at this! It's gone! All gone!"

"What do you mean?" Usagi came closer and looked down the rectangular hole. Then she gasped.

As there was no shaft leading down into some ancient cave, but only a very shallow hole that was ending abruptly in solid rock. When Rei climbed down into the hole, her waist was still above ground level.

"That can't be," she grumbled in irritation. "There has to be an entrance somewhere around here. We didn't just imagine walking around for hours in that labyrinth, did we?"

Usagi wanted to say something, but then her gaze wandered off to the left, by chance. She whispered: "Rei, come out of there and look at this! But be quiet!"

Rei did as she was told and carefully peered around the pile of rubble. And blinked when she looked at who had appeared in the ruined courtyard.

It was a rider. But not some normal villager who was out for a morning ride. This guy looked like some kind of ancient warrior, clothed in a leathery breast plate and grasping the hilt of an impressive sword, whose sheath was hanging at his side. The brown-haired guy looked as if he was only slightly older than Ash. But his steely gaze and his posture made him look mature.

Even stranger than the rider was the horse on which he was riding. It wasn't really a horse, but something resembling a unicorn... the two girls could see the white horn adorning the animal's forehead! But most impressive were the blazing flames that were burning around the steed's neck and backside, as if they would be forming its mane and tail. Strangely enough, the rider didn't seem to be fazed by the fire at all.

Luckily, he didn't seem to see them. Instead, his gaze was aimed at a certain young boy who had just entered the ruin: Ash! And his strange, yellow-furred companion was with him as well.

Rei and Usagi ducked down behind the rubble. "This looks like a downright conspiracy," Usagi whispered. "And Ash is not the only human who's in league with those weird animals."

"I wonder why he is clothed so... archaically," Rei pondered. "Let's listen to them, maybe we can find out more about what they are planning."

Meanwhile, the rider rose his right hand and greeted Ash and his companion. Ash replied something they couldn't understand. They were once again talking in that weird language. After some time, Ash made a waving gesture with his arm and left the ruin. The mounted warrior and the yellow creature were following him.

"Let's follow them," Rei whispered, and Usagi nodded. They followed the strange threesome down the hill, into the forest, to a big clearing.

And right to an assembly of the weirdest creatures the two Senshi had ever seen in their life.

There were human-sized creatures with blue skin and enormous muscles. There were colorful butterflies fluttering through the air, as big as a human child. There were four-legged animals with green skin and strange plants growing from their backs. And there were also several humans among the weird gathering, some of them riding on other creatures.

Ash repeated his greeting, and some of the other beings and humans returned the gesture.

Ash and his companions then started talking with each other. As before, Rei and Usagi couldn't understand a single word, but they all seemed very agitated.

"This is somehow amazing..." Rei murmured. "How could all of those beings hide from the humans living nearby, if there are so many of them?"

"Well, there are some humans with them, right?" Usagi whispered back. "Maybe they helped them out."

That was a logical explanation, but somehow Rei doubted that this was the truth. Those humans over there didn't look like they would be locals. They made the impression as if they just came out of a fantasy novel, the way they acted and were clothed.

Rei didn't know if they could fight with all of those creatures at once, even if she would know what kind of powers they might have. Still, if all of them would attack the construction site...

But then something happened that made her worry about their own lives... Usagi didn't notice how her upper body had slowly tilted over as she was looking down at the assembled creatures, and then she tripped over a thick branch, lost her balance and rolled down the small slope, right into the clearing.

Rei groaned.

Usagi shook her head. "Oof, clumsy me..." She then looked up... and right at the tip of a sharp sword that was pointed directly at her face.

The brown-haired boy had dismounted from the unicorn and was now threatening her. He said a few harsh words in his language. In the corner of her eyes, Usagi could see that the others were as angry as he was. Many of the creatures were growling at her, and one or two of the other humans also drew their weapons.

The brown-haired boy's sword slightly moved backwards, as if he was getting ready to strike.

'Oh no!' Rei thought frantically. 'Usagi!'

"Gary!" The voice was hard and firm, and neither Usagi nor Rei didn't know what it meant... only much, much later would they learn that is was the name of the armed boy.

But the unicorn rider did not move at first, Ash had to repeat the word before he sheathed his weapon. But he and the others still threw glares of hatred towards the blonde girl.

Ash said a few sentences that sounded like commands and gestured to his right. There were some complaints and grumbling, but they all obeyed, even the brown-haired boy, as he mounted his steed and followed the others. Only the yellow-furred animal stayed behind and looked at Ash questioningly. Ash said a few calm words and repeated his gesture. Finally, the creature seemed to sigh, nodded and followed the others.

In the end, he and Usagi were the only two remaining.

The black-haired boy looked up to where Rei was standing. "You can come out! Only Pikachu saw you, and he won't tell."

Suspiciously, but still glad that Ash seemed to have saved her friend, Rei came down into the clearing.

"What's going on here?" she demanded to know, after she helped her friend up. "And why did you help us?"

"What's the matter with you two?" the boy snapped back. "Are you crazy? You're lucky that you're still alive! Not all of them obey me like that, you know?"

"But who are they?" Usagi asked. She had calmed down a little bit. "Where did they come from? And what do you plan to do with the workers at the construction site?"

Ash glared back at them. "It's for your own good if you don't know. Now leave! Go home and don't tell anyone about this! This doesn't concern you!"

"Well, it does concern us if you and your crazy bunch are about to attack helpless humans," Rei angrily replied. "Why are you doing this? The explosion yesterday... that was one of your friends, right? So, what's the big idea?"

"You don't understand anything," Ash grumbled. "They... they're destroying the Alph Passage with their so-called 'construction'. And that's something that I cannot allow! We must stop them! With force, if necessary!"

"But what IS the Alph Passage?" Usagi asked. "Is it the labyrinth we've been in?"

"I've already said enough," Ash muttered. "Now, as I said: Go! I won't be able to save you a second time!" And then he turned around and ran away.

Usagi looked at her friend. "I wonder... if he's really a bad guy, you know? He did save me from those others, after all. And perhaps they have a good reason for all of this..."

"Even so," Rei grumbled. "We can't let them simply hurt innocent people. There has to be another solution to this. Now let's hurry and follow him! We have to stop him and the others!"

They raised their transformation items.

"MOON CRISIS, MAKE UP!"

"MARS CRYSTAL POWER, MAKE UP!"

Transformed, the two Sailor Senshi hurried after the footsteps of the boy, clearly visible in the soft soil of the forest.

"The nerve..." Sailor Mars grumbled angrily while they were following the many footsteps of Ash and his companions. "He can't just bring his freaky friends out of nowhere, attack the construction site and demand they should stop their work. After all, those men only do their job."

"I wonder why they are so upset..." Sailor Moon sighed. "This 'Alph Passage'... do they live there? Is it their sanctuary or something like that? Or is it something else?"

"Well, I'm planning on finding out," Rei grumbled. "And that boy better watch his mouth the next time, or else I don't know what I'd do."

They then quietly followed the trail for a while.

After some time, they heard something. The sound of flowing and rippling water...

"A waterfall?" Usagi asked as she recognized the noise.

"We must be near the place where the small river Grandpa told me about is flowing into the lake," Rei explained. "He said that the water is flowing down a waterfall, directly into the lake."

They stepped out of the forest and looked upon the lake. For a short instant, Usagi expected that the waters would turn crystal clear, like they did two days ago, and she would see the sunken city again.

But no such thing happened.

Rei looked around. "Hey, where did they go? I can't see them anywhere."

"Well, we can still follow their footsteps, can we?"

"No, we can't," Rei said. "They're ending here, for some reason."

She was right. The footsteps of Ash and the others were leading directly to the edge of the lake, then ended.

"You suppose they swam through the lake to reach the other side?" Usagi pondered.

"I don't think so," Rei replied. "I don't really believe that unicorn with the flaming tail would tolerate water. And if they took a boat, we should be able to see them."

She scratched her head. "Damn, they're not making this very easy..."

Sailor Moon looked over to the waterfall. "You know... I once saw a cartoon where the hero hid in a cave behind a waterfall. Perhaps that's where they vanished."

"Sailor Moon... such things only happen on TV, you know?"

"Well, we won't know for sure if we don't give it a try. I'll just take a look..."

Rei groaned. "Usagi... you're wasting our time here."

But after a short while, her meatball-headed friend shouted: "I was right! There's a cave in here!"

"No way..." Rei murmured in disbelief as she climbed over the rocks that were lying along the lakeside. She didn't know what amazed her more: That there was actually a cave behind the waterfall, or the fact that Usagi was actually right for once.

As she peered through the flowing waters, she could see the hidden cave as well. "Maybe this is another hidden tunnel," she suspected. "But it doesn't look as dark and narrow as the tunnels of the labyrinth."

Usagi grinned. "Looks like this is where they vanished. Well, let's go after them!"

Rei hesitated for a short while, then carefully balanced along the edge of the water, until she reached the waterfall. She quickly stepped through and shivered as the cold water flowed along her back.

Usagi quickly followed her. "Brrrrrr..." she shuddered. "C-c-cold..."

The cave was indeed a tunnel, much bigger than the tunnels of the hidden labyrinth they had explored the previous day. It also looked like the sunlight shining through the waterfall was illuminating it sufficiently.

The Senshi looked at each other and nodded. Then, they walked over the wet cavern floor, as they followed the tunnel.

But just after they took a few steps, Usagi suddenly felt woozy. "Whoa..." she muttered as she staggered around. "What the...?"

It had felt as if something soft had hit her neck, near the shoulders. And then, she felt lightheaded. The way Rei was staggering around made her suspect that her friend was feeling the same.

"W-w-what?" Rei groaned. "D-did you hit me, Usagi?"

"Of course not," Usagi replied, slightly offended. "I got hit by something as well..." She looked up at the ceiling of the cave. "You think it was a pebble that fell down from up there?"

"A rock would have hurt," Rei said. "But that felt like... like... Well, as if someone had thrown a pillow at me from behind."

Usagi looked around the floor. "There's no pillow lying around here..."

"I know that," Rei grumbled, upset at her blonde friend's ditziness. "Go on ahead instead of saying stupid things!"

"Meanie..." the moon princess muttered as she continued to walk through the cave.

"I wonder if Ash and his friends have reached the construction site by now," she then wondered.

"Let's hope not," Mars said. "If they managed to cause an explosion, I don't want to know what else they might be able to do. So let's hurry up so we can catch up with them."

But as they very soon realized, they wouldn't catch up with them in a while.

Mars and Moon just stared in surprise when they reached the dead end of the tunnel.

"Well, one thing is for sure," Usagi sighed. "They didn't go that way."

"What the hell?" Rei mumbled in irritation. "If they didn't go through the waterfall, where else could they have gone?"

She looked around to see if there was some other way, maybe a hidden passage they didn't see. But there was nothing.

"Man, what a waste of time," the Senshi of Mars groaned. "And who knows how far they have gone by now?"

"I think we would have heard something by now then, right?" Sailor Moon asked. "I mean, the construction site is not that far away, is it?"

"That's true," Mars nodded. Seeing that they had no other choice, they turned around and walked back the way they came.

When they reached the waterfall, Rei looked grimly at the flowing water. She wasn't exactly looking forward to the inevitable cold shower.

"All right," she grumbled. "Let's get this over with..." And together, they stepped through the water.

And just seconds later, the water came crashing down on them with the force of a sledgehammer and pressed both of them down into the depths of the lake.

Confused and in panic, they both struggled wildly against the powerful pressure that was coming from above. They didn't know what was going on, and at the moment, they really didn't care. They only knew that they had to reach the surface soon, or they would drown.

They've both been swept some distance away from the waterfall by now, and so they began paddling wildly, hoping they would reach the bright surface of the lake in time.

But only after a few strokes Rei realized that she wouldn't make it. She would only be able to hold her breath for a few seconds, and that was it.

But just before she abandoned hope, a dark shape came zipping through the water. To the paddling girl, it felt as if a strong hand was grabbing her right arm and pulled her upwards. She then felt how she was downright catapulted towards the surface... and then she broke through it with a mighty gasp.

After taking some breaths, she realized that Usagi's head had appeared right next to her. She swallowed a few times.

"Th-thank you... Usagi... I thought I was gonna die down there." She then grinned. "I didn't know you could swim that fast. And how did you manage to hold your breath for such a long time?"

"I... I didn't..." Usagi coughed. "It wasn't me," she said. "I thought you were the one who saved me."

"Huh?" Rei wondered. "But if not you, who else did...?" She looked around, but there was no one else there. No boat, no other swimmer...

But then something occurred to her. She turned to take a look at the waterfall... and gasped as she saw what was pouring down into the lake just behind them.

It wasn't the small waterfall they saw before... not at all! Coming down the enormous cliff with a thundering roar was a massive waterfall, at least as wide as a four-lane highway. No wonder the massive force of that thing had pressed them down into the depths of the lake, which...

Which wasn't the lake they knew.

The lake in which they were swimming was at least twice as big as the lake near the summer residence of Usagi's aunt, and the castle sitting on top of the hill wasn't a ruin... it was a massive, intact stronghold, towering over the lake which was not the same lake they had seen earlier that day, just as the castle over there, on the other side of the lake, wasn't the ruin in which they had seen Ash and Gary.

After the two Senshi finally reached the shore, as weak and tired as they were, they came to a very simple conclusion...

"Rei... we're saved!"

"Yes. But... I believe we're not in Japan anymore, Usagi."


	4. The Lady of the Island

"I know what you mean, Rei," Usagi said as she stood up from the ground. "I mean, it's the same air as back home, the same water... the same algae... Yuck!" She plucked some slimy algae out of her long pigtails. "But... it feels different. You know... a different atmosphere. As if magic itself would hang in the air."

"I know," Rei nodded. "A magical world... I wonder if this is where the strange creatures came from."

The feeling of being watched made them both turn around.

Swimming behind them, in the shallow water, a human-sized creature with webbed hands and feet was smirking at them, its impish eyes looking at them from above a long beak that was situated in the middle of its face. On its forehead, a red gem was placed. It had the proportions of a human, but its features and movements made it seem more like an animal.

Usagi gasped and jumped back. "D-don't come any closer," she said. "W-we're not afraid of you."

"Why should you?" the creature smirked and crossed its arms. "I just saved your butts, after all!"

Rei and Usagi stared at the creature with wide eyes. "You... you're speaking our language?" Rei asked.

The creature shook its head. "No, you're speaking mine! But I guess that's not a big difference, is it?"

"Uh..." That was all Usagi could say. And after everything that happened, it was a very fitting exclamation.

Soft laughter came from behind them and made the turn around yet again.

"You don't have to take everything he says too serious," a gentle voice said. "He likes to tease strangers, you know?"

It was a nice-looking woman with pink hair, dressed in an elaborate robe with strange markings.

"Who... who are you?" After everything that happened, Rei decided to be on guard.

"Me? Oh, everyone calls me Joy... Lady Joy of the Island! It's a pleasure to meet you!" And she gave them a short bow.

'So we're on an island as well,' Rei mentally sighed. 'That's just great...'

"But why are you speaking our language, you and this... thing in the water?" Usagi asked.

"I'm not a thing!" the blue creature snapped.

"Please, be more careful what you say," Lady Joy smiled. "Golducks get offended pretty quickly. As for your question, well, it's simple: Everyone who comes into this world automatically understands our language... and we can understand you! It's very convenient, don't you agree?"

"And just... where are we?" Rei asked.

Joy shook her head. "I see, we have much to discuss. I will tell you everything you need to know... but later."

"Well, if I'm not needed anymore, I just might go," the Golduck nagged. "After all, it doesn't look like they are actually grateful that I saved them."

"Oh... sorry about that!" Usagi blushed. "But, you know... you're not very... um..."

The Golduck looked at her closely. "Yes?"

"Um, not very handsome."

"Thanks a lot!" the Golduck said sarcastically. "If you say that to everyone who saves your life, I might have to think again if I decide to save one of you humans." And with a swift motion, he dove under the water and was gone.

Rei bopped her friend on the head. "Smooth move, meatball head!"

Joy chuckled. "Well, I can see that you are both very confused... why don't you come with me? You're totally soaked, I see. In my tower, you can get dry clothes as well as a nice, warm meal."

Rei wanted to point out that they could just drop their Senshi magic to get back their casual clothes that should still be dry, but when Usagi heard the woman talk about food, she perked up and said: "Sure, we'd love to come!"

"It's always nice to have guests," Joy smiled. "You have to tell me everything about what happened to you. And later - if you like - I can show you the city."

As her hand gestured over the waters of the lake, the very same thing happened as two days ago: The waters cleared, and Rei and Usagi could look down at the bottom of the lake, where a big city was situated, and all kinds of underwater creatures were walking and swimming along the streets.

And then the image vanished, and the lake turned back to normal.

Lady Joy lead them through a lush forest, even more brimming with life than the forest around auntie's summer residence. The animals seemed to be very trusting, and a small squirrel even sniffed Usagi's fingers.

"Um, I don't want to be rude, but we haven't got much time," Rei spoke up. "We were just following someone, when we got through that waterfall..."

"Ah, so you came through the Hidden Gate?" Joy replied. "Don't worry, you have all the time you need. Here on my island, time has no meaning. You could stay here for months, and when you return to where you came from, it would still be the same time as before you set a foot on the island."

Time has no meaning... Rei was wondering whatever Sailor Pluto would say when they told her about this phenomenon.

If they would find a way to return...

"Well, here we are!" Joy said as they finally stepped out onto a big clearing.

In the middle of the clearing, a tall stone tower with artificially crafted stained glass windows and impressive spires was rising over the trees.

"This is my domicile," Joy told the two girls. "Please, come in and accept my hospitality!"

She went over to the impressive gate and slightly touched it with the palm of her hand. With a creaking sound, the portal opened, and the two Senshi followed their hostess into a big hall, whose walls and ceiling were completely made of marble. A long table was standing in the middle of the room, with porcelain dishes standing at every seat. A grand chandelier was hanging from the ceiling, and in the background, a long, spiral stairway was leading upstairs.

While Usagi and Rei were gaping at the gorgeous sight, Lady Joy clapped her hands twice.

A small, wooden door that looked like it was made for servants, opened at the other side of the hall, and two small shapes came out. "You called, my lady?"

"Meowth, Luna... please take our guests to their chambers and make sure they get dry clothes."

Upon hearing that, Usagi gasped and looked at the black-furred half of the feline duo that had just entered the room.

"Lu... Lu... Luna!"

The moon cat was at least as surprised as her friend. "U-Usagi?"

And then the two friends ran towards each other, the black cat leaping into the arms of her human friend, while Usagi hugged her and sobbed.

"LUNAAAA! I... I missed you so much!"

* * *

"Here, those are your quarters," Meowth explained after he lead the two Senshi upstairs. "Everything you need is in here, but if you need anything else, just ring the bell and I'll come."

As Usagi couldn't let go of Luna, Rei nodded. "Thanks, we'll be fine!"

"Good to hear!" The two-legged cat looked at the black-furred feline sitting on Usagi's lap. "You coming, Luna?"

"Um, I want to talk to them for a while," Luna explained. "I'll join you in a minute."

"Hum... okay, but don't take your time. The other guests will arrive shortly."

He then threw Rei and Usagi a suspicious glare. "You two don't have long noses, do you?"

Taken aback, Usagi looked at Rei. "Long noses?"

"Just askin'..." Meowth grumbled. "But I see, they're fine. Well, just barely." And he turned around and left the room.

Usagi reached for her face and grabbed her nose. A long nose? Well, compared with that cat with its non-existent nose...

Luna giggled. "Don't take him too seriously," she said. "Meowth is a nice guy, but he sometimes says strange stuff."

"Sooo... you seem to know him pretty well, huh?" Rei smirked. "I bet the two of you get along just fine..."

"Huh? WHAT? No, no, it's not like that, Rei..."

"Suuure it isn't," Usagi giggled "But be sure to get his phone number after the first date."

"Usagi!"

"What?"

Luna looked down at the ground. "You don't understand... he's my brother."

The two girls looked at Luna as if she had grown horns.

"SAY WHAT?"

"It's true," she sighed. "To be honest, I never knew much about my family." Her ears drooped down. "Back in the silver millennium, I only knew my mother... a resident from the planet Mau, in the queen's service. But, she never told me about my father... she just said that he left us when I was a very young kitten."

"But how can Meowth be your brother?" Rei wondered. "I mean, he's not a normal cat OR a Mau, you know that?"

"That's true," Luna admitted. "But... neither was my father." She took a deep breath. "You see... my father was a resident of this world."

"Oh, you can't be serious," Rei moaned. Usagi stared at her friend. "But how did that happen?"

"Well, from what I heard, this is a parallel dimension to the dimension where our planet Earth - as well as the moon - are situated. But, as it appears, the gateways between the worlds had existed even back then. And... the Moon Kingdom had diplomatic relations with the kingdoms of this world."

"And we never heard of this before... why?" Rei asked.

"W-well, you never asked... and besides, you know Artemis and I don't remember everything from before you awakened."

"So, your father was a resident of this world, huh? But how did he get to know your mother?"

"He was an ambassador in the service of one of the kings of Kanto."

"Kanto...?"

"Yes, the name of this world! And he met Mom when she was at the castle of Queen Serenity. And when the queen decided to stay in contact with this king, Daddy was a regular visitor in the Moon Kingdom. And, well... you can guess what happens next."

"They fell in love with each other," Usagi sighed. "Such a romantic story..."

"Heh, not too romantic, I'm afraid... you know, because of his status, Daddy wasn't allowed to have a lover... and so he got demoted. Meaning he could never see Mom again."

"Awww, that's not fair," Usagi whined. "And that's why you never met him?"

"Yes," Luna nodded. "But... Mom and Dad had another child. He was born at the same time as me... more or less. Which makes us twins."

"So Meowth is your..."

"Yes, my twin brother! Only that I turned out to be a Mau, just like Mom. And he... well, he became a Pokémon, like Daddy! A Meowth."

Rei raised an eyebrow. "Pokémon."

"The name of the non-human, but intelligent inhabitants of this world," Luna explained. "They come in all shapes and types, but they're all called Pokémon."

Usagi shook her head. "Man... what a confusing and complicated story."

"But how did you get here?" Rei wondered. "We've been worried sick! Artemis is literally going up the walls with worry! Ami and the others are still searching back home. So what happened?"

"Well... if I knew what was going to happen, I would have informed you," Luna sheepishly said. "You know... Kanto and our world are seperated from each other by a dimensional barrier. And it was only recently that this barrier opened at various parts throughout Kanto. And Meowth... he was one of those Pokémon who slipped through, appearing back in our home world, in the middle of Juuban."

Usagi gasped. "So he was the one who kidnapped you?"

"Not kidnapped," Luna insisted. "You know, that evening was pretty hectical... for all of us. Including Meowth. He had just discovered the entrance to a world that was completely unknown to him. He... he didn't see the Youma, you know? He was climbing on top of some trashcans, searching for food, when Artemis and I came running, searching for cover from the Youma's attacks. And then I got clumsy and ran into those cans. Meowth was so surprised that he fell down. The trashcan lids as well. The lids fell down on Artemis, Meowth and me. Both of us were unconscious. Meowth didn't see Artemis, as he was covered by the trashcan lids. He only saw me and felt guilty that he knocked me out. So he took me with him, to take care of me, never knowing about Artemis or you guys. And when I awoke... I was here, in this world."

"But wait... that doesn't make any sense," Usagi spoke up. "If he didn't know who you are, why did he take you with him?"

"He... recognized my real identity after some time, when I was still unconscious. You know, Daddy gave him a picture of Mom as a birthday present... and Mom looked very much like me when she was young. So he..."

"He figured you would be his mother." Usagi understood.

"Yes. But he was still glad when we realized that I had to be his sister. And I... I was happy as well." Luna sighed. "You can't imagine what it's like... living for an eternity and knowing that no one of your family is still alive... and then realizing that your brother and father are still alive after all."

"But how could they still be alive after all that time?" Rei wondered. "Did someone put them into stasis capsules as well?"

"No, it's just... time flows differently in this dimension. They do have a time guardian, just like we have Pluto, but... his feeling of time is different from hers, so that means one year in our world doesn't necessarily equal one year in Kanto. It can vary, you know?"

Usagi scratched her head. She didn't really understand what Luna was trying to tell her, but she decided not to think about it anymore. This was already giving her headaches.

"That's why you didn't return, right?" Rei asked softly. "When did you come here? For how long did you stay in Kanto?"

"Only two days," Luna said. "I wanted to return yesterday, so you wouldn't be worried. But then... Meowth asked me to stay for at least one day, and I couldn't bring myself to say no." She looked sad. "He's my brother, you know? Who knows if I would see him again, would I return now."

"I see your dilemma," Rei nodded. "You wanted to see us again, but at the same time, were afraid to lose your brother again."

"And while you were only two days on this island, much more time has passed in Juuban," Usagi realized. "At least three weeks."

"I'm sorry!" Luna looked down at the ground. "I would have contacted you, but..."

"I know, Luna, it's all right! We understand!" And Usagi hugged her friend.

Rei smiled as she looked at her two friends. While they still hadn't solved the mystery of Ash and his companions, and what his plans were, they had at least found Luna again.

Now the question was, what would they do next? Go back home - if that was possible? Go and track down Ash in this world? Stay here for a while? Go and leave Luna behind?

It was a tricky situation indeed...

* * *

After changing back into their casual attire, Rei and Usagi's clothes were dry again.

Luna excused herself, for she had promised to help in the kitchen. Usagi was wondering how a four-legged animal like Luna would be able to be much of a help, but a sharp glare from her friend convinced her to shut up for now.

After some time, the two Senshi decided to tell their hostess that they had to return to their home dimension very soon, as they were both worried just how much time would have passed when they return back home.

Even before they entered the big main hall on the first floor of the tower, they could hear the voices of many people.

Humans and Pokémon of all kind were sitting at the table, talking to each other, laughing and drinking from their goblets. Lady Joy was sitting at the front side of the table and smiled when she saw the two girls coming down. She gestured at two seats that were situated directly next to her own chair.

While walking over to their seats, Usagi looked over the assembled guests. In addition to the humans, she could see oversized insects, colorful animals and even a strange, floating creature with a metallic hide, that seemed to be sucking on what looked like a battery with a straw.

"Welcome," Lady Joy addressed them, as they sat down. "As the two newest guests on this island, you are the guests of honor."

Usagi and Rei blushed a little bit as she stood up and raised her goblet. "A toast to Usagi and Rei, our two newest guests, and after Luna the two first guests coming from the Earth Dimension after 100 years."

Everyone else raised his goblet as well, and Usagi bashfully looked down at her lap. She wasn't used to be the center of attention... at least not from that many people.

"And now, I hope you all enjoy yourselves," Joy spoke up.

Usagi wanted to reach for her goblet as well, but realized that it was empty. Lady Joy seemed to notice as well, as she clapped her hands.

"Meowth! Shame on you, leaving our guest without a drink! Now hurry up!"

Meowth came out of the kitchen door, balancing an enorm mug on his shoulder. "Meowth do this, Meowth do that, I can't do everything at once, you know?" he grumbled.

He walked up to Usagi and poured some of the red liquid into her goblet. Usagi took it and sniffed the drink slightly. "Is that... wine?" she asked.

"Yup, the best one we can get on this island," Meowth nodded. "Why d'you ask?"

Usagi was blushing once again. "Um, you know... I normally don't drink alcohol..."

Meowth gaped at her. "What? No alcohol?" He then got angry. "I knew it! A long nose, and an abstainer as well! Oh, what's the world coming to?"

Just to calm the upset cat Pokémon down, Usagi quickly took a sip from her goblet, and she even managed to form the hint of a smile. "Absolutely delicious," she stated. "Really, the best I ever drank."

Meowth stopped his ranting and looked at her closely. "And you really mean it?"

"Of course," Usagi said while crossing two fingers behind her back.

Still grumpy, but satisfied for now, Meowth took the mug and carried it back into the kitchen.

After he was gone, Usagi groaned. "I don't know if I like Luna's brother very much..."

Rei couldn't help but giggle.

"I'm sorry for Meowth's behavior," Joy spoke up. "But there are two things he absolutely detests: Abstainers..."

"And people with long noses," Usagi sighed. "I know, I know..."

Just then, the kitchen door opened once again, and several pink creatures that Lady Joy called 'Chanseys' were coming in, carrying a big amount of trays with food.

Well, while the beverages weren't exactly what the two girls would have preferred, the food was exceptionally delicious.

"It's really good," Rei spoke up after having swallowed a few potatoes.

"I'm glad to hear that," Lady Joy smiled. "After all, if you're staying here for a while, it simply wouldn't do if you weren't satisfied with our chef's creations."

Rei put down her fork in confusion. "Uh... I'm sorry to say this, Lady Joy, but... we can't stay for long. Our friend Luna has told us that time is flowing differently in your world that in ours. We won't know for how long we are already missing... and our friends and families will want to know where we are."

"Oh, I see," Joy nodded. "I understand your worries... but that shouldn't be a problem at all. As I told you, time has no meaning on my island. While Celebi controls time all over Kanto, my island is protected by what you could call a 'time pocket'. No time will be lost, regardless of how long you are planning to stay here."

"Celebi?" Usagi asked curiously.

"The guardian of time," Lady Joy explained.

"Well, that's good to hear," Rei spoke up, but still... we would like to return very soon, if that is possible."

Lady Joy suddenly seemed very confused. "Um, I apologize... Wasn't I a good hostess? Weren't you satisfied with tonight's dinner? And you still haven't seen all of my island. I was looking forward to lead you around a bit, tomorrow."

"That's really nice of you, but seriously: We have to leave tomorrow. There's something we have to take care of, back in our dimension."

"Oh dear..." Joy sighed. "And here I was hoping you would want to stay a little longer."

"We would love to," Usagi said. "But really, we can't. I hope you understand..."

"Oh, I do understand," Joy assured them. "But... you see, there's a little problem with the Hidden Gate. It... only opens once every month."

"What?" Usagi whined. "That means we're stuck here for now?"

"I'm afraid so," Joy sighed. "I'm sorry I had to inform you about it like this, but I DID hope you would want to stay for a while by yourself."

Rei groaned. "Oh well... at least we don't have anything to lose, if time really doesn't go on while we're here..."

"You will like the island, I'm sure," Joy smiled at them reassuringly. "And some of my permanent guests are about your age... maybe you can become friends."

Usagi giggled. "It would be like having a cross-dimensional pen-pal."

And after that, they decided not to think about their worries anymore and to enjoy the meal and the companionship of the other guests, which were much nicer than the Pokémon they had seen in Ash's companionship.


	5. The ghosts of Lavender Castle

Over the next few days, Usagi and Rei got used to the lifestyle of Lady Joy and her guests. As it seemed, many of them had stumbled upon the island by accident. Some only decided stay for a little while, others have decided to stay forever.

Lady Joy had been showing them around her island, which was completely covered by a lush forest that was brimming with life. Pokémon and animals were living next to each other in perfect harmony.

But as Lady Joy also had some obligations in regard to her other guests, she wasn't able to look after the two girls all the time. So she assigned a young girl about their age to be their guide.

May - that was the pretty, brown-haired girl's name - quickly became a good friend, and the three of them spent their days with exploring the island and having fun together. Sometimes, Luna and even her grumpy brother Meowth were joining them. For a while, Usagi almost forgot that they still had to return back home.

On the second day, May told the two of them that she was glad to finally have some friends she could hang out with.

"But we're all friends, here on the island," Lady Joy then said in a puzzled voice.

"Yeah, but that's not what I meant... and you know it, Joy! I mean, all of this celebrating and being happy can be kinda dull, you know?"

When Rei asked May about it once they were by themselves, the girl chuckled.

"Oh no, Lady Joy would never harm any living being. I don't think she would be able to. You see, everyone here on the island is free to leave whenever he wants. I only said that I had no real friends."

Once, when they were looking at the enormous castle situated on the other side of the lake, they asked May about it.

"It belongs to one of Kanto's kings," May explained. "They are the wise rulers of our realm... except for Lady Joy's island. I've been a resident of the Petalburg Kingdom before coming here... but let's not get into details," she quickly said.

Rei and Usagi exchanged a puzzled look. May always was like this when they were talking about her past. It seemed like she didn't want to talk about it, and so they respected her wish.

As the days went by, Usagi, Rei and Luna became more anxious for returning back home, while the date when the Hidden Gate would open up again drew closer and closer.

But then, almost two weeks after they had first arrived on the island, the arrival of a special guest changed everything.

They were once again sitting in the big dining hall, together with May, Lady Joy and her other guests, when suddenly the big entrance door opened and a small bird with blue, red and white feathers came flying in. He seemed to be pretty upset, and he flew straightly towards Lady Joy and perched down on her shoulder.

Suddenly, everyone sitting at the table got very anxious. Usagi looked around in confusion.

"What's up?" she asked May, who was sitting next to her. "What's going on?"

May shrugged. "I dunno! Taillow normally heralds all of the new guests, but I don't believe it's someone Lady Joy is expecting."

Just then, Joy stood up. "My friends, you have to excuse me for a while... but I have to take care of something."

She walked around the table and headed for the door. But she only walked half the distance, when suddenly, a single person appeared in the entrance. Usagi couldn't see the person very clearly because of the bright sunlight coming from outside.

Joy came to a stop and gasped. "Prince Ash!" she sharply said. "Why are you here?"

"Ash?" Rei murmured. "Why is Ash here? And since when is he a prince?"

It was indeed Ash, but the black-haired boy had changed. He was still the same boy with the same face, but he wasn't dressed in those clothes they saw him wearing when they met him back in their own dimension.

He was dressed in red and white leather, and he was carrying a helmet under his right arm, which was also coated with leather. At his side, an impressive sword was hanging. At the same time, his whole stance had changed. He was walking as if he had something proud and regal about his figure.

He walked up to Lady Joy and smirked at her. She, on the other hand, didn't seem to be too amused.

"Are you always coming into other people's houses without an invitation?" she asked.

Ash shrugged. "Only if I know that you wouldn't let me in. And if it was important."

"What's so important to disturb the peace of this island?" she asked.

Ash looked past her, at the table. "Perhaps the fact that I want to protect this peace. Lord Oak is sending me. I'm looking for someone, someone who came through the Hidden Gate. You don't have some new guests here, by any chance?"

"You won't find any mercenaries among my guests, you hear me?" Joy said sternly. "Now leave! This place is under Celebi's protection!"

"I know that, and I respect that," Ash replied impatiently. "But now get out of my way. Not all people have all the time they need, unlike you."

And when Joy still didn't move, he simply raised his hand... and pushed her out of the way.

"How... how dare you?" Never before had Usagi seen Lady Joy as angry as now. "Meowth! Vigoroth!"

One of the backdoors opened, and Luna's brother came running out, showing his sharp claws. He was followed by a bigger Pokémon that looked like a wild, sloth-like creature.

Ash simply stared at the two advancing Pokémon... then he snapped his fingers.

And six giants came into the big hall.

Usagi almost gasped in shock when she saw the massive, muscled, four-armed behemoths that had entered. Meowth and Vigoroth stopped right in their tracks as if they had just run into an invisible wall.

"Machamps?" Lady Joy gasped. "You... how dare you bring your soldiers into my tower?"

"Just for your protection and that of your guests," Ash told her. "There have been Rocketeer sightings nearby, very close to your island."

Joy didn't seem to listen. "You've gone too far this time, Ash," she shouted. "Lord Oak will hear about this and..."

"I already told you," Ash sighed. "Lord Oak himself sent me... and besides, I also talked with Celebi. And he gave me his blessing to enter the island."

"You're lying." But Joy didn't sound too convinced.

"I never lie," Ash proclaimed. He then gestured at Rei and Usagi. "Lord Oak wishes to speak to those two girls. He has important things to tell them. Those Machamps are simply my escort. Lord Oak thought it would be safer for your home if a few of them stayed behind, here on the island, to protect you and your guests."

Joy thought about it, then she shook her head. "No. I respect Lord Oak's wish regarding Usagi Tsukino and Rei Hino. But I don't want those creatures on my island! Not even Celebi himself could order me to tolerate them."

Ash shrugged. "It's your decision." He raised his hand, and the Machamps turned around and left.

He then looked at Usagi and Rei. "Come with me!"

"Where to?" Rei asked. "And why should we come? You weren't very nice to us, the last time we met. And you still aren't!"

"Well, if it was just me, I would simply leave you behind, as I believe you to be nothing but irritating troublemakers. But other people wished to see you, and it looks like I don't have anything to say about it. And I would prefer you two to accompany me as my guests, not my prisoners."

"The nerve..." Rei grumbled.

"You should go with him," May whispered. "I've heard of that guy and if what people tell about him is true, he can be quite persistent. Save him the trouble and do what he wants, and I don't think he will harm you."

"But what about the time differences?" Usagi asked. "If we leave this island, we won't be protected by the time barrier anymore, right?"

"That won't be your biggest problem," Ash said, who had listened to her comment. "As I said, I talked to Celebi himself, and he will protect you two from the time differences in our dimension." He pulled out two light green bracelets out of his pocket. "Wear those and you are under Celebi's protection. Now, are you coming or do I have to tell one of my Machamps to tie you up and drag you aboard my ship?"

Rei sighed in defeat. "Well, whatever... Okay, but I warn you, buddy: One trick and you'll be sorry!"

Ash just smirked in response.

* * *

After a short discussion, they were allowed to take Luna with them, as she was, in a sense, a member of their team. Meowth was very worried about his sister's safety, but still he decided to stay back on Joy's island.

"I can't simply abandon my duties here," he told Luna as he embraced her. "But at least I'll see you again when you come back for the Hidden Gate... so take care of yourself, okay?"

"I promise," Luna smiled.

Rei and Usagi quickly said goodbye to May and Lady Joy, who had packed them a few things that 'everyone needs on a journey', as she said. She also gave them some lunch boxes.

And then, the three of them followed Ash to the shore, where they saw his ship.

But not just any ship. It was a magnificent vessel, with three tall masts, and an elongated bow, which ended in the golden face of an unknown Pokémon. Dozens of oars were sticking out of its sides, and every single spot of the impressive hull was covered with thin plates of gold, which made the whole ship glitter like an enormous jewel.

"Wow!" Usagi said in awe. "What's that?"

"The Latias," Ash explained shortly. He lead them up a plank and they reached the ship's deck.

Here, they saw the tall, muscular Machamps again, together with several smaller creatures that were looking similarly and only had two arms. Ash called them 'Machokes' and 'Machops'. They were working all over the ship and sitting at its numerous oars.

"I hope you all are seaworthy," he smirked, and then the ship was casting off.

Rei and Usagi nearly lost their balance, as the powerful arms of the Machokes and Machamps was propelling the whole ship out to the open lake. The Latias was moving at an astounding speed, and Usagi doubted that the whole journey to the other side of the lake would take very long.

But as she stepped at the ship's rail and looked for the shore on the other side, she didn't found it.

Where the other shore was supposed to be, she only could see the vastness of the open sea.

Ash stepped up next to her. Usagi could see that he had put away his sword and helmet. "What are you looking for?" he asked.

"Um, nothing," Usagi replied. "I just didn't know the lake had an opening to the sea."

"He doesn't," Ash explained. "But there's always water under the Latias' keel."

That simple and yet so weird explanation confused Usagi for a while, so Rei stepped up to Ash and looked at him fiercely.

"Don't you think it's time for some explanations?" she shouted.

"I will," he said. "But after your nap."

"What are you talking about? I'm not... tired..." Suddenly, they felt woozy. "Wh-what's going on?" Rei muttered. "We just got up from bed before you came..." Usagi yawned.

"It's Lady Joy's magic," Ash explained. "Now that you have left her island, it's leaving your bodies."

"Her m-magic?" Luna muttered. "But why...? I thought she...?"

"She's not an evil person," Ash said. "Her spell keeps everyone happy, and the people who live on her island can live forever, as long as her spell is intact. What you are feeling are just the aftereffects of that spell. You just have to sleep for a while. I have prepared a cabin for you."

And while the two girls closed their eyes, the last thing they felt were the strong arms of the Machokes that caught them, as they fell asleep.

* * *

When Usagi woke up, she felt as if she had woken up from a very long dream. Somehow, she understood Ash's words much better... everything that happened on Lady Joy's island now just felt like a long dream to her.

She sat up and saw Luna lying on the blanket of her bed. She and Rei were lying in a small cabin that was just big enough for two people to sleep in.

Rei was starting to stir as Usagi looked upon her form. She blinked and rubbed her eyes.

"Good morning," Usagi grinned as Rei opened her mouth for a big yawn.

"Morning..." Rei muttered and looked around. "So, we're still aboard the ship?"

"Looks like it," Luna said. "Although I wonder where it is taking us..."

Usagi got out of bed and realized that someone had put down some new clothes for them, next to their beds. They were made of white leather and looked kinda archaic, but she appreciated the gesture after spending several days in the same old clothes she brought from home.

After they both got dressed, Rei went to open the door.

And a massive mountain of muscles stood in front of her.

Surprised, Rei took a step backwards, as the Machoke turned around. "Stay here," he grumbled in a deep voice. "I'll fetch the prince..."

And he turned around and left.

Rei looked at Usagi and Luna. "So, we wanna wait for him?"

Usagi sighed. "It's not like we can go anywhere..."

A few minutes later, the Machoke returned... alone.

"Follow me," he said. "Prince Ash wants to see you."

And they followed him through the lower deck of the Latias, until they went through a door. Behind it, they saw a big room with colored windows, through which they could see the ocean.

Ash was sitting at a big table that was covered with food and drinks. "Sit down," he said. "You three look like you're hungry."

Now that he mentioned it, the stomachs of both girls and the black cat started to rumble. Sitting down at the table, Usagi and Rei quickly put some meat, bread and vegetables on their plates and ate as fast as they could. Luna did the same with the dishes a Machop was giving her in multiple bowls.

After their appetite was sated, they sighed and slumped down in their chairs.

Ash smirked. "Had enough?" he asked.

"Yeah..." Usagi sighed. "It was delicious... and I was even more hungry than usually."

"Yeah, me too," Rei nodded. "Strange, huh?"

"It's not that strange," Ash said. "After all, you slept two days and two nights."

Luna gasped. "Two...? Why that long?"

"It's evening," Ash explained and gestured at the windows. "In about half an hour, we'll reach Lavender Castle." He stood up. "You wanna come up and watch how we enter port? It's really worthwhile!"

"Yeah, sure..." Usagi nodded. "But still, can't you tell us...?"

"I'll tell you outside, I promise," the black-haired boy assured them.

As they followed him upstairs, he sighed. "Look, I wanna apologize for what happened. Especially for the rude way I spoke to you at Lady Joy's place. But you have to understand... not even I am immune against her spell. After staying there for too long, I probably won't want to leave again."

"But why?" Usagi asked in a puzzled voice. "Why is she doing all of this?"

"Lady Joy must be the kindest person in Kanto," Ash sighed. "But she doesn't understand that too much happiness can be a bad thing as well."

They reached the upper deck, where the Machops, Machokes and Machamps were busy preparing the ship for the landing.

In front of them, a big castle with black walls was situated on top of the steep cliffs that were rising out of the sea.

"Is that your castle?" Luna asked.

"No, but its people are our allies," Ash told her. "We'll stay here during the night, then the journey will continue on horseback."

Usagi couldn't bear it anymore. "Who are you, Ash?" she asked. "I mean, who are you really? Lady Joy called you a prince..."

Ash chuckled bashfully. "Well, that sounds more impressive as it is," he said. "You see, there are many castles in Kanto, and every lord of a castle is called king. That's all there is to it."

"And why did you bring us here?" Rei wanted to know.

"Did you want to stay on the island forever?" he asked back.

"No," Rei replied. "But that doesn't answer my question."

He sighed. "Well, okay... you're right, there's more. Our sovereign wants to see you two."

"You mean... that Lord Oak you mentioned at Lady Joy's place, right?" Luna asked. "Who is he?"

"The ruler of all of Kanto," Ash explained. "You see, he wants to ask a favor of you."

"Of us?" Usagi wondered. "But why? We didn't know anything about Kanto, a few days ago. We just met you when you and your friends were about to attack that construction site... and now we learn that you are a prince in a magical dimension, and your ruler wants to talk to us."

"That's right," Ash nodded. "I'm not allowed to tell you anything about that favor before he has talked to you, but there is something I wanna ask of you as well..."

"And what is that?"

Ash turned around to firmly look into their eyes.

"When he asks that favor of you... I want you... to decline!"

"WHAT??"

"Not right away," the young prince said. "But... at least wait with your decision until we reach my mother's castle... okay?"

"I don't think I really understand at all..." Usagi muttered.

"I can imagine, but you have to understand that this is very important for us all... and please, don't say yes until you heard all of it. Regardless of what it is. Okay?"

Luna and Rei were still confused, but when Usagi looked into Ash's eyes, she felt that she trusted this boy, even if he was a little rude sometimes.

"I promise!" she said, and Ash sighed in relief, then nodded.

For now, they didn't talk about it anymore and watched how the Latias approached the steep cliff and finally entered the harbor underneath the tall towers of Lavender castle.

* * *

The first thing that seemed strange to Usagi, Luna and Rei was that no one was welcoming them when they left the small port. No humans, no Pokémon, no one. There wasn't even a harbor master around.

Usagi believed that Ash would explain it to them, but he remained silent while they walked up the rocky path, to the castle.

Expecting that they would at least meet humans inside the castle, Usagi followed Ash inside, as he opened the heavy front gate. But the halls behind it were as deserted as the harbor.

"Ash, where is everyone?" Rei whispered as he lead them through the dark castle.

Ash didn't respond immediately, but instead gestured at a door at the end of a corridor. "Over there! There's something I have to show you!"

Rei winced. 'What's that?' she thought to herself. 'That strange feeling... somehow, I feel a big amount of spiritual energy, directly ahead of us...'

Ash opened the door and they entered.

It lead into another big hall, looking similar to the dining hall in Lady Joy's Tower. Many tables were standing in the middle of the room, but there still was no one around.

But then Usagi realized her mistake: There weren't any humans around... but all around them, transparent shadows were flitting through the air. They were floating over the tables, sitting on the chairs, and seemed to ignore them.

Then Usagi got a closer look at them: Some of the ghostly apparitions looked like clouds of purple smoke with scary-looking faces inside. Other ghosts had creepy hands that weren't attached to their bodies and floated around freely.

One of them passed them very closely, and when Usagi stretched out her hand, it was passing through the creature as if it wasn't there. But at the same time, a chilly feeling ran down her spine.

"Don't worry," Ash whispered. "They can't see us."

"Ash, what is this place?" Rei muttered. "What's going on?"

Ash looked grimly at the assembled shadows. "These are the residents of Lavender Castle."

"Them...?"

Ash nodded. "Yes, what's left of them. This is their last meal before they attack."

"Attacked?" Luna asked and looked up at the black-haired prince. "Who attacked?"

"The Rocketeers..." Ash grumbled. "Lavender was one of the first castles they assaulted. They ravaged the land all around here and burnt down the villages. The survivors fled into the castle. The Rocketeers ordered the lords of Lavender to surrender themselves, but they declined." Ash closed his eyes. "They knew that the castle would fall, but they sacrificed themselves, so the surviving farmers and peasants could flee." He shook his head. "Not a single lord or knight survived the following battle."

"Are they... are they dead?" Rei carefully approached one of the floating, cloud-like spirits, to take a closer look at him.

"Sort of," Ash said with a grim voice. "Whenever a human or Pokémon of Kanto dies an unnatural death, the spirit turns into a Ghost Pokémon."

He gestured at the shadows. "Those Ghastlys and Haunters are all what remained of the castle's residents, after the Rocketeers killed them."

"Is... is that the reason why you brought us here?" Luna asked. Usagi could only utter a small sob.

"Yes and no," Ash replied. "Lavender Castle is one of the few places where we are safe from the Rocketeers. I don't know if the Ghost Pokémon would be able to harm them, but the Rocketeers are deadly afraid of them."

He sighed. "Lord Oak wanted you to see this before you talk to him. Come, they are all waiting for you, upstairs!"

"Will there... will there be more ghosts up there?" Usagi whimpered.

Ash shook his head. "No. For some reason, the ghosts always stay on the lower floors of the castle." He smiled at her. "Don't worry! We will spend the night here in the castle, but on the top floor. You won't have to be afraid that suddenly, a ghost will appear in your room."

"Well, that's good to hear," Rei gulped. She didn't like this castle one bit.

They left the Ghost Pokémon by themselves. Usagi shuddered as one of the Haunters floated over her head. She hurried after her friends.

As Ash lead them upstairs, Usagi asked: "Ash... the Rocketeers. Who are they?"

"We don't know for sure," he explained. "But they suddenly came from the far North, a few years ago. The humans and Pokémon offered them food and a place to stay, but as it turned out their hospitality was wasted. One ship after another arrived, and more and more Rocketeers arrived in Kanto. And then they started raiding the villages. They killed humans and Pokémon, taking everything for themselves."

"Why did they do this?" Luna asked. "Is there a reason for this?"

"I don't know," Ash grumbled. "Kanto is big, and there would have been enough place for everyone. But they killed the messenger Lord Oak had sent to them for negotiations. They don't want to negotiate. They want to take everything for themselves."

Then Ash started yelling: "Yeah, maybe there is a reason for this invasion. Maybe they've been driven out of their home country or their land is desolated, or whatever. I don't know! But that changes nothing! Nothing gives them the right to just come here and kill innocent people, just because they want to have their land."

"Is... is that the reason why you brought us here?" Rei asked. "So that we help you against the Rocketeers?"

"Maybe..." Ash muttered. "Or maybe not, that depends on you. Lord Oak will explain everything to you. Now, hurry up!"

And he ran up the stairs, without saying anything else. After exchanging a distraught look, they followed him.

Even before Ash opened the door at the top of the stairs, Usagi, Rei and Luna already heard the voices of many people that had to be behind these doors. And this time, they were living people.

They entered, and looked into a room that was filled with people of various sizes and ages, from young people that were about Ash's age, up to old, wise-looking men and women. Only a few Pokémon were present, among them the yellow-furred rodent that the two girls had seen when Ash was in the ruined castle, back in their world.

He ran up to them and greeted the young prince with a wide smile. "Ash!" he shouted in a high, but clearly understandable voice. "You're back!"

"Hey, Pikachu!" Ash waved.

"So, I see you found them," his friend said excitedly. He then nodded towards the two Senshi and the mooncat. "We've never been properly introduced, right? I'm Pikachu."

"Nice to meet you," Usagi smiled and introduced herself and her friends.

"So, how come you and Pikachu spoke that weird language back in our world... and not now?" Rei asked.

Ash shrugged. "The bracelets I gave you also act as an all-purpose translator. Not everyone speaks your 'Japanese' as fluently as I do." He grinned. "In fact, I'm speaking Kantonese right now."

Rei and Usagi looked at each other and chuckled. Luna sweatdropped. "Cantonese...?"

"Kantonese," Ash grumbled, slightly offended. "That's a difference..."

At that moment, the door on the other side of the hall opened, and three more people entered. Usagi realized at once that the elderly man in the middle had to be Lord Oak, the ruler over all of Kanto.

He had this aura of authority around him, but at the same time, a face full of wisdom and kindness.

Rei also looked at the two companions of the regent. They were much younger than him, the red-haired girl didn't look one year older than Ash. She was wearing an azure blue robe with white markings that were resembling ocean waves. An elegant saber was strapped to her side.

Oak's male companion was a little bit older, wearing a bulky armor with broad shoulder guards and a helmet. He had very narrow eyes which made the impression as if he was always squinting. He was carrying an immense war hammer.

"Who are they?" Luna whispered.

"They are coming from two allied castles," Ash whispered back. "The one with the armor is Sir Brock from Pewter Castle, and the girl is Princess Misty from Cerulean." He shook his head. "The situation must be worse than I thought."

Before either of them could ask him what he meant, Lord Oak spoke up:

"My friends! Pokémon as well as humans! I'm glad you all came!"

Usagi expected him to say more than just that, but he simply nodded, and the others in the room nodded back and went on with their conversations.

Lord Oak looked over to where Ash and his guests were standing and gave them a welcoming smile, before he approached them. His companions kept their distance.

Rei gave her blonde friend a slight shove. She was standing here not only as a representative of the Earth Dimension, but also as the last princess of the Moon Kingdom.

"Welcome to Kanto!" Oak greeted them. "I hope you had a pleasant journey."

Usagi kept her composure and bowed. "Th-thank you for the invitation. This is, um... a nice castle!" She smiled sheepishly.

Rei groaned.

Lord Oak laughed. "Well, I'm sorry I couldn't welcome you in another port town, but as Ash probably told you already, Lavender castle is the safest place. But let me reassure you, the castle of Queen Deliah is not nearly as dark and gloomy as this one."

"If I may ask, who is Queen Deliah?" Luna spoke up.

"Um, she's my Mom..." Ash said with a blush.

"Oh..." Luna nodded, understanding.

Lord Oak seemed to notice how uncomfortable Usagi seemed to be, with all the unknown people standing around here, and speaking with a country's leader... he could tell that she wasn't used to this.

Therefore, he made an inviting gesture towards the door. "Miss Tsukino, I would like to go for a little stroll through the castle. Would you like to keep me company?"

Realizing that Lord Oak did this so they could talk in private, Usagi nodded gratefully. "That's fine with me."

* * *

Usagi still felt a little insecure around Lord Oak, but at least there was no one else around.

While the two of them were strolling along a corridor, bright sunlight shone in from the big windows.

Sunlight? Usagi blinked. It had already been dark when they had entered the castle.

Lord Oak noticed her confusion. "Don't worry, it's just an illusion." He stepped to the window. "Come and look!"

Usagi followed him and looked outside. She looked upon a small village near the castle, could see the tiny forms of people and Pokémon that were walking along the streets, and even some ships on the lake. All of that was supposed to be an illusion?

"This is how the lands around the castle looked like before the Rocketeers came," Oak said in a quiet voice. "I think it's the Ghost Pokémon's subconscious memories that are causing this phenomenon."

He looked at Usagi. "Ash told you about the Rocketeers, right?"

"Yes," Usagi said in a small voice. "But not much."

"Well, we don't know much about them," the regent shrugged. "Only that they are coming from a cold land far north from here, beyond the sea. They are going to destroy us, princess!"

Usagi didn't know what shocked her more: The fact that Lord Oak seemed to know as her status as the moon princess or the sheer simplicity of his words. He seemed to be very certain of what he said.

"Th-that can't be," Usagi muttered. "I mean, this is such a beautiful world, and it can't possibly be destroyed. And I mean, from what Lady Joy told me, Pokémon are supposed to be powerful creatures, and then there are your soldiers..."

"And many more allies," Lord Oak nodded. "Oh yes, but all of them together won't be enough to stop the Rocketeers. We capture or kill one of them, and hundred new ones will come. And they have Pokémon allies as well, strange species of Pokémon we never saw before. We can hold our defenses, but not for very long."

"But how can we help you?" Usagi asked. "If there are that many of them, I doubt our powers will be enough..."

"That's not the reason why I asked Ash to bring you here," Oak told her. "You know, I called for a meeting, which will be hold at Pallet Castle, within four days. But I came to welcome you here, so I could see if you and your friends are the ones we have been waiting for. You are the ones!"

"And what can we do that you can't?" Usagi asked.

"There might be a way how we can save us all," Lord Oak explained. "There is a..." He hesitated. "There is something that could help us. A weapon to drive the Rocketeers off and to save our country. But... it's in a place we cannot enter."

He then gestured at the young moon princess. "You can, Princess Serenity of the Moon Kingdom!" He shook his head. "We have been looking for you for such a long time now..."

"B-but..." Usagi was confused. If they already knew that she and Rei were two of the sailor Senshi, then why...?

"Why did Ash and the others want to attack that construction site?" she suddenly asked.

Now Lord Oak seemed to be confused. But then he realized what she meant and laughed. "Ah yes, Ash told me about that... Well, you have to excuse him and my grandson Gary... they were the two that lead this operation. You know, it's actually pretty simple: They have been searching for a clue regarding you and your Senshi in that area, and the Alph Corridor was one of their passageways back into our world. And they simply wanted to hinder those workers from destroying one of the very few ways that could lead them back home. After I learned from their plan, I immediately ordered them to come back."

"So that labyrinth was just another passageway to Kanto?" Usagi asked. "Just like the Hidden Gate?"

"Yes!" the regent nodded. "And I can bring you and your friends back to Lady Joy's island if you like, anytime! If you decide not to help us, then I won't force you! No one is going to force you!"

Usagi wasn't too sure how she should react. What should she do? Stay here and help? Or go home with Rei and Luna?

"You don't have to decide right away," Oak said. "Just come along with us to Pallet Castle. You have time to decide until the meeting. If you decide you don't want to help us, we will escort you back to Lavender and take you to the Hidden Gate, aboard the Latias."

"I have to talk with the others..." Usagi murmured.

Oak nodded. "Of course! That's what I expected."

"But... if we decide to find this 'weapon'... would it be a long journey?"

"Oh yes!" he nodded. "It would take weeks, if not months. But don't worry: Thanks to the power of Celebi, no time will have passed in your world, when you return."

That was very important for Usagi, not only because of their friends and families. She somehow had the feeling that... something important was waiting for them, back home. She couldn't place a finger on it, but she got this strange feeling.

"We have four days to decide?" she asked.

Lord Oak nodded.

"Okay... I'll have to ask the others, but if you want my help alone, I'll help you as best as I can."


	6. The Burning Plains

When thinking about the Ghost Pokémon that were still haunting the lower levels of Lavender Castle, it seemed like a miracle to Usagi that she was able to find some sleep at all.

She, Rei and Luna were given a chamber on their own, directly next to the one Ash was sharing with Pikachu, Sir Brock and Princess Misty. As it turned out, the three royal offsprings knew each other, as Luna could overhear a friendly conversation between them. They were talking to each other like they were close friends, not only the representatives of three allied castles.

Usagi had asked her friends about their own decisions, but they could tell that she was already determined to help Lord Oak by retrieving whatever they needed to protect their country. Luna was worried if the bracelets Ash had given them would really work as they had been told, but she and Rei were ready to follow Usagi wherever she wanted to go. She was their princess, after all.

When the three of them stepped into the entrance hall of Lavender Castle the following morning, they could see that it was empty. Not a single ghost was nearby.

Ash and Pikachu were waiting for them next to the gate. As they looked past them, they could see how the other humans and Pokémon they had seen the previous night were getting ready for the journey.

"Did they all come because of us?" Usagi asked in awe.

Ash nodded. "Yup, that's correct! Those are all soldiers from my mother's court that volunteered to escort you to Pallet Castle. And they're the best of our warriors."

Pikachu grinned. "If some Rocketeers decide to ambush us on our way, they might be in for a little surprise."

Just then, two other people came down the stairs. Usagi instantly recognized Misty and Brock, both of them armed and prepared for the journey.

Ash frowned. "You two are coming as well?"

Misty shrugged. "It was Lord Oak's wish... not much we could do about it. Don't ask me why he decided that we should come along as well..."

"Seems like Lord Oak wants to make sure that Princess Usagi and her companions arrive at our castle safely," Pikachu said with a wink. "After all, the three of you are the most skilled fighters of us all."

"Aw, don't say that!" Brock grinned while blushing. "You're embarrassing me."

Pikachu shrugged. "Well, it is true..."

Usagi then spoke up: "Please, don't call me 'Princess Usagi', okay? It makes me feel weird..."

"Usagi..." Luna sighed. "You ARE our princess and the last heir to the moon kingdom. It's about time you're getting used to such formalities."

"But she's right," Misty giggled. "I'm not too fond of those titles either... I was born as the daughter of a king and queen, so what of it? I can still treat my friends as friends, right?"

"She has a point," Rei grinned, and they laughed.

Just then, five unicorns with manes and tails of burning fire approached them. Their leader lowered his head and addressed Usagi in a gentle voice: "Please, allow us to be your mounts, princess! We will take you safely to Pallet Castle."

"Um, they're not going to burn us, are they?" Rei asked skeptically.

"Rapidashs can control their flames up to the point where they can let them burn without actually harming anyone," Brock explained.

"We assure you that you won't feel even the slightest burn, Princess of Mars," the Rapidash leader said, while he winked at Rei.

"C'mon, Rei!" Usagi mocked. "Don't they call you the 'Senshi of the Flames'?" She giggled. "Or is that 'Chicken of the Flames?'"

Rei threw her blonde friend a dark glare and quickly approached one of the fiery steeds, who helpfully lowered his front body to help her mount his back.

When it was Usagi's turn to get up, she hesitated. "I've never ridden before..." she admitted.

"Hah!" Rei snorted. "Who's the chicken now?"

Misty chuckled, but winked at the blonde princess, who blushed sheepishly. "Here, I'll show you how it's done."

* * *

A few hours later, the group was already riding through the calm woodlands that surrounded Lavender Castle.

The forest wasn't as lush as the one on Lady Joy's island, but still beautiful. Usagi looked at the giant trees that rose above their heads in awe.

But she could also feel something else... like a dark shadow that was lying on this place. She felt as if someone was watching them, and the sun wasn't shining as brightly underneath the leafy canopy.

She suddenly was aware that Ash was riding directly next to her. She didn't even hear him coming.

"You're feeling it too, right?" he asked.

Usagi shrugged, then shook her head. "I just thought I saw something..." she murmured.

"That's not what I meant," the young prince said. "What you saw was just a group of Pokémon that's following us at a distance. I mean the darkness... the cold."

"You mean...?"

Ash nodded. "Yes. This area is controlled by the Rocketeers. We have to be careful so they don't find us."

Pikachu, who was sitting directly behind his friend, looked sad. "These woods were once such a peaceful place... and now all of the Pokémon and forest animals are scared of the Rocketeers."

Now Usagi realized why everyone was on edge. No wonder, if they were riding through their enemy's territory.

At noon, they stopped on a small clearing. A few soldiers were riding ahead, on Ash's command, to look for possible scouts of the Rocketeers that might be waiting for them. But everyone else dismounted, and they lit a few campfires.

"We'll rest here for a while," Brock explained. "The second half of the journey is going to be difficult, so we're going to need every bit of our strength... and you two look like you could use some rest."

"You can say that again..." Rei groaned. "Nothing against the warmth of the Rapidash, but my behind's all sore..."

"I'm sorry that I don't come with some padding," her Rapidash mused.

"Well, not everyone is a born rider," Misty smirked. She then took a waterskin out of her bag and gave it to Rei. "Here, drink some water!"

"Aaaaah, thank you!" Rei sighed, snatched the waterskin and took a deep gulp.

"Hey, leave some for me," Usagi shouted. She was thirsty as well.

Luna looked around. "What's wrong?" Pikachu asked curiously as he approached her.

"Um, I'm just wondering..." the black cat said. "Aren't the other Pokémon that are supposed to protect us coming as well?"

Misty shook her head. "No, they wouldn't. They are Wartortles... Water Pokémon from my kingdom, you know? And the Rapidashs wouldn't be that comfortable with them around."

"Why not?" Usagi asked curiously.

"Well, it's obvious, isn't it?" Ash asked. "Fire and Water don't mix. Besides, there are some among them that don't really like each other."

Usagi sighed. So, not everything was perfect in this beautiful world after all... even without the Rocketeers.

"And what about you?" Rei suddenly asked Ash.

The boy was taken aback by that sudden question. "What do you mean?"

"You're not too happy that we are here either, are you?" the Shinto priestess asked.

Ash shook his head. "That... that's not true! I have nothing against you."

"Really?" Rei replied doubtfully. "You didn't seem to pleased when you brought us to Lavender Castle."

"That's different," Ash sighed. "It's because... well..."

Pikachu patted his friend's side. "It's okay, Ash!" He looked at Rei seriously. "Not everyone in Kanto agrees with Lord Oaks plan, you know? It's not about you, but many of us disagree with him... and I must say, I am one of them. What he's planning to do is just wrong."

"But why?" Usagi asked in astonishment. "I mean, if it can save your country...?"

Brock and Misty exchanged a look. "He... didn't tell you what he's planning to do, right?" Brock asked.

"Well, he didn't say much," Usagi admitted. "But he said that there is something that could help you. A... weapon, I believe."

"A weapon?" Ash laughed. "Oh yes, I guess you could call it that."

When he saw the confused faces of Usagi and her friends, he sighed. "I guess he really didn't tell you much... fine." He stood up and looked down at Usagi. "Come, I want to show you something."

"What?" Rei asked. "Now?"

"Yes," Ash nodded. "It's important. Everyone, please wait here for us... we're gonna make a small detour. Don't worry, it won't take long."

Usagi wasn't too sure about that, but she realized how important this had to be for Ash.

"Okay, fine," she sighed. "Rei, Luna... you don't mind, do you?"

"Um, that's okay," Rei shrugged. "As long as you're safe..."

"Don't worry!" Ash smiled and put his hand on his sword's handle. "I'll protect her!"

"Usagi, be careful!" Luna said in worry. Usagi nodded and followed Ash as he lead her through the forest.

"Where are we going?" she asked as they reached the edge of the forest. Ash didn't reply immediately, but he looked over the desolate plain that was in front of them. He then pointed at some hills in the distance. "It's over there!"

As they were walking over the dry earth, Usagi realized just how bleak this place looked. Only a few patches of grass were visible, and only a single tree here and there. She shivered. She didn't like this place one bit.

They then reached the hills. "Just on top, and then you'll see," Ash said in a grim voice.

Usagi was more confused then ever, but at the same time, felt slightly uncomfortable, as if whatever Ash was going to show her wouldn't be a nice view.

She was right.

As they reached the top of the hill, Usagi was looking at a scene that might have been in one of her nightmares.

The land was pitch black, and smooth as a polished marble floor. Only a few charred trees were rising out of the monotony, or some rocks that looked as if they were half-melted. And behind the horizon, a red glow of fire was visible, as if the whole world behind there would be aflame.

"Oh my god..." she whispered. "Ash, what... what happened here?"

Ash didn't respond, but gestured over at a pile of rubble, which Usagi could identify as some old, scorched ruins.

"Over there," he said. "And hurry! Being here for too long can be dangerous."

Usagi believed him, so she followed him quickly. The air around them was very warm, but she shivered.

When they reached the ruins, Usagi realized that this had to be a town or village once, as she could see the charred remains of various buildings.

"Look closely at it," Ash said with a strained voice. "I want you to remember this... every single part of it."

"But what...?" Usagi stopped in mid-sentence, as she saw a dark shape in front of one of the ruined walls.

Ash nodded towards it, and she approached the dark shape fearfully. She let out a gasp of terror when she realized what it was.

It was a human. At least the remains of a human. He was leaning against the wall, with raised arms and a look of terror on his face. He was standing there, as black as the charred stone, burned into the glazed rock around him.

"A former resident of this town," Ash said quietly. "The very last one that had left some trace. Looks like he was standing in front of that wall, when the fire came."

"F-fire...?" Usagi stuttered. "What fire?"

"Dragon Fire!" Ash spat. He took her hand. "Come, we have to go back. Being here for a long time can be dangerous."

The two of them ran back, until they reached the edge of the forest. Usagi was breathing heavily. She closed her eyes, but the horrible image was still in her mind.

"Who... who did that?" she finally asked.

"Lavender..." Ash replied. "The people of Lavender..."

"Wha...? Why? Why them?"

"It happened a long, long time ago," Ash sighed. "Thousand years, maybe even two thousand. Back then, Lavender was a powerful kingdom, respected by all the other kingdoms... their warriors were mighty, and their psychics even more. But... they had enemies."

"The... the people of that town?" Usagi asked.

Ash nodded. "No one can remember why they fought, but it was a long and horrible war. And no one could defeat the other one. But then, one day, Lavender seemed to succumb. Desperately, their psychics combined their powers and... they summoned a dragon."

"A... dragon?" Usagi gasped. "You mean that a dragon has...?"

"Destroyed the town, yes," Ash said grimly. "They say his name was... Rayquaza! Within one single night, he destroyed their army and burnt down their land and the town itself. The flames were consuming everything, and the curse he left behind is still killing everything that lives. Farther away, near the coast, the earth is still burning, even today."

Usagi was terrified. A dragon? How could a single dragon do all of this? A single creature, so powerful and evil... could she imagine a being like that?

But then she got reminded of Metallia and Pharaoh 90, and she sobbed.

"Why?" she finally asked. "Why are you showing this to me?"

"Why?" Ash asked. "You're really asking me why?"

He then shouted at her furiously: "Because that's what Lord Oak wants you to do: He wants you to find Rayquaza... and bring him to Kanto!"

* * *

Usagi still didn't feel able to say a single word, when they walked through the forest, back to the camp. The view of the Burning Plains was still etched into her mind.

All of a sudden, Ash stopped. "What?" Usagi asked. "What's wrong?"

"Quiet," Ash whispered. "Someone's coming..."

"You don't think it's one of..."

"The Rocketeers? Maybe, maybe not. But I don't want to take any chances."

Suddenly, loud shouts came out of the forest and made them jump in surprise. "The others!" Usagi shouted in fear.

"They're attacking the camp," Ash shouted and drew his blade. "C'mon, let's hurry!"

Usagi did her best to follow the upset prince as he sprinted through the thicket. When he once again stopped, she nearly ran against his backside.

But Ash himself had nearly collided with the raven-haired girl that had appeared in front of him.

"Ash?" Rei asked. "Damn, watch where you're going! We're trying to escape here!"

"From who?" Usagi asked, as she noticed the forms of Misty, Luna and Pikachu behind her friend.

"The Rocketeers!" Misty explained. "They attacked the camp, just after you left. They took us by surprise..."

"And what about Brock? Where is he?" Ash wanted to know.

Misty shrugged. "Dead, captured or escaped. I hope he escaped, but we can't wait to find out. The others have all stayed behind to fight. They wanted to give us a chance."

"What?" Usagi asked in disbelief. "All of them... they just stayed behind? Just how many of those Rocketeers have attacked you?"

"Dozens of them," Pikachu panted. "We wouldn't have made it if it weren't for the others' sacrifice."

"Sacrifice?" Usagi yelped. "You don't want to tell me that they... they are..."

"Dead?" Misty asked. "Of course they are... or some of them, most likely. This is WAR, Usagi. I don't know what ideas you grew up with, but every battle has its victims."

"Hey, give her a break, okay?" Rei defended her friend. "We always had to deal with inhuman monsters, and for your information, we are fighting because we want to avoid making human sacrifices."

"Well, I suppose you didn't fight so many enemies at once, then," Misty shrugged. "In a war, you have to make some sacrifices."

"Enough of this now," Ash interfered. "We have to find a place where we can hide... if there are that many, we won't be able to defeat them all by ourselves."

"Is there really no way we can escape?" Luna asked.

Misty shook her head. "Only over the Burning Plains. And I'd rather die than crossing those accursed plains."

"And if we go back to Lavender Castle?" Rei asked. "You told us that the Rocketeers are afraid from that place."

This time, it was Ash who shook his head. "We're already too far away from there. The Rocketeers would ambush us on our way."

"Well, do you have a better idea?" Rei asked. Ash wanted to reply, when suddenly, another yell came out of the forest. They all spun around to see two of Misty's Wartortle soldiers stumble out of the forest.

And a large number of black-armored riders was following them.

They were all wearing the same black armor, which was adorned by a big, stylized 'R' on their fronts. The neck and shoulder parts of the armors were framed by patches of fur, and in spite of the warm climate, they all wore fur coats. Helmets that almost looked like insectoid masks were covering their faces. They were all armed with swords or spears, and one of them was swinging a massive, spiked mace.

The Pokémon they were riding on resembled giant pigs with sharp tusks and a thick fur that was covering their eyes. The Rocketeers were sitting atop their towering hunchbacks.

Usagi yelped in fright when she saw how some of the riders that were holding short bows were firing their arrows at the escaping Wartortles. Luckily, most of them bounced off their thick shells.

"Defend yourselves!" Ash yelled as he welcomed the Rocketeers with his sword. Pikachu was right at his side, his cheeks sparkling with electricity.

Usagi and Rei immediately raised their transformation items.

"Moon Crisis, Make Up!"

"Mars Crystal Power, Make Up!"

Sailor Moon then realized that only a few of the Rocketeers were riding atop the shaggy swine Pokémon... but that didn't mean that they were any less dangerous in combat. Evading a sword swipe just in time, Usagi realized that close combat wasn't really her specialty.

Luckily, Misty jumped in-between her and the attacking Rocketeer in time, blocking his attack with her own saber. "If you don't have close combat weapons, keep your distance and use your magic!"

She didn't have to tell that twice to Mars.

"BURNING MANDALA!" she shouted. As it turned out, her fire attacks were very effective against the massive boars the Rocketeers were riding on.

While Ash, Misty and the Wartortles engaged their enemies in melee combat, the Senshi and Pikachu kept their distance to fire their magical and elemental attacks.

"FIRE SOUL BIRD!"

"MOON SPIRAL HEART ATTACK!"

"Piii-kaaa-CHUUUUUUUUU!"

Just when Usagi thought they would be able to beat them, she saw an approaching shadow in the corner of her eyes.

Luna, who had been staying out of the battle, yelled: "Sailor Moon, watch out!"

Usagi gasped as she raised her Moon Rod to deflect the Rocketeer's attack. But the warrior was physically stronger than her, so she stumbled backwards, almost falling on her behind.

Seeing an opening, the Rocketeer stormed towards her with a loud battle cry, raising his weapon for the ending blow...

And then he cried out in pain, as his chest was pierced by the bloody tip of a curved saber.

Misty pulled her weapon back, leaving a bloody wound on the Rocketeer's chest. With a groan, the warrior collapsed on the ground.

Ash helped Usagi to stand up. All around them, the battle was over. But at what cost...

Rei was limping visibly, and she clutched her side. Both Wartortles wouldn't be able to stand up from the ground anymore, and Usagi didn't want to start thinking about what might have happened to those who had decided to stay behind and fight.

She stared down at the bloody corpse of the Rocketeer. The helmet had fallen off and she was able to see her opponent's face.

It was a girl. Not much older than herself or Rei, blonde hair was cascading down her shoulders in curly pigtails. Her face was frozen in a grimace of disbelief.

Sailor Moon looked up at Misty. "You... you killed her..."

The princess of Cerulean sighed. "Yes, I did. I had to. She would have killed you if I didn't. I already told you: This is war, and there will be sacrifices."

"But... but they are humans..." Usagi stuttered in disbelief. "They are humans, and you are killing each other..."

"Of course they are humans," Pikachu grumbled. "What did you expect, that they are terrible demons who would suck your life away until you die?"

"Pikachu!" Ash sternly said. The electric Pokémon winced and didn't say anything else.

Misty sheathed her saber and knelt down next to the distressed moon princess. "I know it is hard, Usagi. Killing others is never easy, and if there would be another way, we wouldn't do this. But they leave us no choice."

"But... you don't understand," Usagi said in despair. "They are humans." She sobbed. "I always wanted to protect humans... how can I do that there are humans fighting each other in this war?"

Misty didn't know what to reply, so she decided just to comfort Usagi by giving her a gentle hug.

Some time later, they both stood up from the ground and, together with the others, left.

* * *

And they continued their journey through the woods, this time on foot, in a group that was much smaller than the one they had been previously in, always afraid that the Rocketeers might show up again.

Rei and Luna had tried cheering their friend and princess up, but Usagi couldn't help it. She couldn't stop telling herself that she was forced to fight humans, maybe even kill them. And the terror that she had felt when seeing the face of the dead, female Rocketeer was still there.

For about an hour, they were walking through the tall trees, until Misty looked up and stopped abruptly.

"What's wrong?" Ash asked. "Let's keep moving."

Misty raised her arm and gestured forward, into the middle of the green forest. "There's something... something over there..."

Ash looked at her in confusion, and Luna looked at Pikachu inquiringly, who shrugged.

"Misty has some minor psychic abilities," he said. "So I wouldn't know what worries her that much. But if it stops her from fleeing from the Rocketeers, I'm starting to get worried, too."

"C'mon, Misty," Ash said again. "Let's go!"

"I... I can't..." she whispered. "Something... is there."

"Yes, and there's something behind us." Ash sounded really impatient now. "A big amount of somethings, and they've got sharp swords and spears."

But Misty didn't even seem to listen. She was shaking like a leaf. Usagi now was worried as well. Whatever could make Misty feel afraid?

She peered through the trees and listened closely. But she saw nothing but the forest, and heard nothing but the wind that was blowing through its branches.

"We have to go," Ash said. "There will be here soon." And when Misty still didn't move, he took her hand and pulled her after him. Reluctantly, the princess of Cerulean followed.

"What do you think?" Rei whispered to Pikachu. "Will we have to fight?"

"I can't really say," Pikachu sighed. "There are many Pokémon living out in the forest that are wild and hostile towards humans, but... I know of no one that should make Misty react like this."

They followed Ash and Misty, and for a while, nothing happened. But then, they reached a big clearing, that was covered in fog. Usagi could see a wide circle of boulders in the fog, and a lone figure standing in its middle.

She gasped, taken by surprise by the sudden appearance of the figure, and looked at Ash and Misty. Misty let out a startled yelp.

"It can't be!" Ash gasped. "It can't be her..."

"It's true, Ash..." Misty whispered. "It is her... Sabrina!"

Rei frowned when she looked at the slim, dark-haired woman that had appeared in the middle of the fog. She didn't look too impressive in her simple, brown robe. But as she and the other Senshi had learned, appearances can be deceiving, and so she stayed on edge.

"What's going on?" she asked. "Who is that?"

"Sabrina..." Pikachu murmured. "They say she is the most powerful psychic in Kanto..."

The woman Ash called Sabrina slowly approached them. She smiled when she saw Sailor Moon and her friends, but when her gaze fell upon Ash and Misty, she frowned.

She walked up to Misty, and a slender arm came out of the depths of her robe. She slightly touched Misty's cheek, and the red-haired girl winced under her touch.

"You are afraid," Sabrina said in a gentle voice. "You two haven't learned anything since we met the last time. You continue to use force to reach your goals." She shook her head. "You carry weapons into this peaceful forest... and they are covered in blood."

"But we were under attack," Usagi spoke up, and regretted it in the moment when Sabrina looked at her.

But the green-haired woman, who somehow reminded Usagi of Setsuna, just smiled. "I know," she said. "But it's not this battle I mean. It was useless, just like all battles, but in the end, maybe there was something good about it."

"I... don't know what you mean," Usagi replied uncertainly.

"It taught you something," Sabrina said. "You might not know it, but it was very important for you. Maybe important for all of Kanto."

Usagi realized with surprise that the psychic knew what happened during the attack of the Rocketeers.

"I know of everything that happens within these woods," Sabrina said and proved that she was able to read Usagi's thoughts.

"Then... you know that we are hunted?" Rei asked.

Sabrina nodded. "Yes, they will be here soon - but don't worry. No one is going to harm you."

Ash wanted to say something, but Sabrina silenced him by raising her hand. "We'll talk later. Right now, there's something I have to do."

She turned around and took a few steps towards the dark forest, where they came from, and waited.

Just a few moments later, riders appeared in the middle of the forest, right on their trail. A big amount of riders, all of them sitting on top of those shaggy pig Pokémon. Their leader was carrying an impressive blade in his hand.

He let out a short yell, and the riders changed their direction. Puzzled, Usagi watched how they did not attack, but instead surrounded the clearing with their Pokémon, forming a wide half circle around them. For some reason, they and their mounts were looking very nervous.

The leader - Usagi now realized that he wasn't sitting upon a pig Pokémon, but instead on a burly Pokémon with pink skin, big ears and needles sticking out of its body.

He looked down at the green-haired woman disdainfully, but Usagi could see that he as well seemed to feel the power that was resting inside of Sabrina, just like Ash and Misty.

"You are bringing weapons to my forest?" Sabrina spoke up. "Who told you to disturb the peace of this place, Giovanni?"

The cold eyes of the warrior were narrowing. "You know my name, woman?" he asked in a harsh voice.

"Yours and those of all your men," Sabrina nodded. "And I also know why you're here."

"Then get out of my way," Giovanni commanded. "We're not here to fight you. We're after the prince and the princess... and after the Senshi."

Usagi winced when she realized that he was talking about her and Rei.

Sabrina raised her hand in a calm gesture. "Sailor Moon and her friends are my guests," she said. "They are under my protection."

Giovanni laughed. "You speak nonsense, woman! How do you plan on stopping me and all of my men?"

"This is a sacred place," Sabrina said sternly. "No one is going to disturb its peace. Not even you. Go! Take your men and leave in peace."

Giovanni looked at her with furious eyes. He then raised his sword and spurred his mount.

Sabrina looked at the spiny Pokémon with a smile. Nervously, it made a few steps, then stood still so abruptly, that Giovanni nearly fell off its back.

Sabrina giggled as she gently touched the muzzle of the Pokémon. "Your Nidorino is much gentler than you, Giovanni."

Giovanni tried again to spur his Nidorino, but the Pokémon didn't obey. Furiously, he jumped from its back and grabbed his weapon with both hands.

"Then I'm gonna make you leave, you fool!" he shouted. "Your tricks won't work on me!"

He raised his sword to strike down the woman, and Usagi gasped in shock, but then the sword disappeared from his hands, and the Rocketeer stumbled forward in surprise. He barely managed to stay on his feet.

With an angry roar, he pulled a heavy dagger out of his belt and threw it at Sabrina. But the powerful psychic simply made a movement with her hands, and the weapon stopped in mid-air, before falling down to the ground.

"What sorcery is this?" Giovanni snarled. "You witch! You're gonna pay for this!"

Sabrina shook her head. "I'm looking in your heart, Giovanni," she said. "And you are not as evil as you want to make me believe. Why do you want to disturb the peace of this forest so badly?"

The tall Rocketeer warrior glared at with hatred. "I'm not afraid of you, witch!"

"You're not supposed to fear me," Sabrina said. "Rather, fear the hatred deep within your heart."

"Get her!" Giovanni ordered his men. "She may be a witch, but we are enough to take her down!"

The riders replied with angry yells and started moving towards the seemingly helpless woman in front of them.

Sabrina put her hand to her mouth and let out a sharp whistle. And all of a sudden, a pink creature with a round body and pointed ears dropped out of the trees and jumped in front of her.

"Jigglypuff..." Sabrina simply said, and the pink Pokémon nodded.

And then, it started singing:

"Jiiiig, Jiiiiggelyyyy, Jiglyyypuuuu-huuuu-huuuuuff!"

Usagi blinked, as the soothing voice of the Pokémon made her sleepy. Her eyes were slowly closing, but then she awoke as Ash pinched her arm. Sabrina turned around, smiled and made a short gesture with her hand. And suddenly, Usagi didn't feel sleepy anymore. Sabrina must have protected her and the others from the effects of Jigglypuff's enchanting melody.

But not the Rocketeers. In bewilderment, Usagi watched how one after the other dropped out of their saddles and began to snore. Only Giovanni seemed to be protected by the song.

And then, Jigglypuff stopped singing. Giovanni looked around. Not one of his men was awake anymore.

"Leave!" Sabrina said again. "Leave in peace, while you can. And never bring weapons to this place anymore."

Giovanni stared at the psychic. "Who are you, woman?" he murmured, his voice shaking.

Sabrina smiled. "Perhaps a messenger of peace," she said. "Perhaps just someone who came here to impede disaster."

Giovanni threw her one final glare, then he walked back to his Nidorino and got back onto his saddle.

"I'll be back," he shouted. "Don't you think you can escape from me forever! And you'll pay for Domino's death, just you wait!"

He turned his Pokémon around, and reluctantly, Nidorino complied. One after another, his men woke up and remounted their pigs. And finally, they turned around, and left the clearing.

When they were gone, Misty hesitantly approached Sabrina from behind.

"Th-thank you for helping us," she said. "They might have imprisoned or even killed us, if not for your help. May we leave now?"

"So you can continue to spread anger and violence?" Sabrina frowned.

Misty winced under Sabrina's stern gaze, and for the first time Usagi heard a sharp tone in her voice.

She shook her head. "No, you can't leave just yet. You are tired and hurt, and there is one among you whose wounds are worse than she wants to make her friends believe." She looked at Rei, who just looked at the ground. "Also, I have to speak to the princess of the moon."

"Is that how you keep your promise not to interfere with the kingdoms again?" Misty muttered angrily.

Sabrina made a resolute gesture to silence her, and Jigglypuff looked at the red-haired princess angrily.

"I'll do my best to help you, but it won't do you good as long as you continue to rely on violence and anger," she scolded. "And now, follow me!"

And those last words clearly weren't a plea or request, but an order that not even Misty and Ash were able to object.

* * *

They followed Sabrina to a big, round hut situated deep within the woods.

While they were walking, Rei continued pressing her right hand against the wound on the side of her body, and she sharply inhaled when she stumbled upon a rock. Usagi and Misty were helping her as best as they could, but they realized that her condition had to be worse than they thought.

Upon reaching the psychic's home, Sabrina clapped into her hands, and the door of the hut opened. Another small, pink creature jumped out that Sabrina introduced as 'Clefairy'.

Sabrina whispered something to Clefairy and Jigglypuff, and the two pink little puffballs nodded, before they hurried back inside. Sabrina then made an inviting gesture towards the entrance.

"Please, come in! Clefairy and Jigglypuff are preparing a resting place for your body, princess of Mars, as well as some herbal bandages. Please follow me, so we can take a look at your wounds."

After they helped Rei lying down on the bed inside one of the hut's little chambers, Sabrina asked Sailor Mars to drop her Senshi magic, so she could inspect her injuries. Rei nodded and returned to her casual attire.

Usagi gasped when Sabrina lifted Rei's shirt and she could see the bloody injury.

Sabrina then turned to her and the others and said: "I'm sorry, but I have to take care of your friend. Please, wait for me in the other room... I will join you later. Misty, if you would stay to help me...?"

"Yes, of course," the red-haired girl instantly replied, went to the elder woman's side, and they went to work.

Ash and Pikachu were following Sabrina's pink helpers into the next room, but Usagi hesitated when she looked at her friend's face, as she was lying down there on the bed, a grimace of pain.

Ash gently touched her shoulder and smiled. "Don't worry, she'll be fine! Sabrina is a skilled healer, and Misty has learned one or two things from her."

Usagi looked at the prince in surprise, then back at Rei and nodded sadly.

Together, they sat down in comfortable chairs in the adjoining room.

"So, Misty and Sabrina know each other?" she asked.

Ash nodded. "Sabrina has known Misty, Brock and me for some time now," he explained. "You might be surprised to hear that Sabrina was once known as a fearsome sorceress who turned anyone who would invade her territory, into an immobile doll."

"Sabrina did that?" Usagi asked in astonishment. She couldn't possibly that this gentle, peace-loving woman could have a dark side.

"She did, but what no one knew was that she once had been under the control of a vengeful Hypno... a psychic Pokémon. He used her as a cover and a puppet, so he could gain control over the entire forest. Luckily, Misty, Brock and I were able to save her from the Hypno's mind control."

"I thought she's one of the most powerful psychics in Kanto?" Usagi wondered.

Ash nodded. "Yes, but she didn't know that Hypno meant her any harm. So he caught her off guard."

"And in thanks, Sabrina offered to train Misty's latent psychic abilities," Pikachu added. "Misty did spend many weeks here, in her home, and learned much about her abilities... and the forest."

"But why was she so upset when we met her?" Usagi asked. "If she's on our side, why did she react like that? She seemed frightened when Sabrina appeared before us..."

Ash sighed. "Well... after Misty completed her training, Sabrina gave her some sort of prophecy..."

"What prophecy?"

Ash looked at her, then shook her head. "I can't tell you... I'm sorry. Misty had asked me to keep it a secret..."

"I... see."

Behind them, Sabrina entered the room. Usagi looked up at her in expectation.

She sighed in relief when the green-haired woman smiled at her. "Your friend is fine now. I bandaged her wounds, and gave her some herbs. She will sleep until tomorrow morning, then her injuries will be healed."

"Thank you," Usagi said while bowing. "Thank you very much!"

Sabrina looked at Ash. "Please, could I speak to the princess in private for a while?"

"Um, sure!" Ash stood up, smiled at Usagi and left the room. Pikachu and Sabrina's helpers followed him.

Sabrina sat down in another chair. "Sailor Moon... you know by now that our world knows much about you, right?"

"Yes," Usagi nodded. "But still, I'm wondering why no one in my world knows about Kanto."

"Oh, there are a few," Sabrina explained. "But they keep it a close secret from others. You know, I believe your friend Luna already told you that Kanto and the Moon Kingdom had once been in contact with each other. Our two worlds got many merits from interacting with each other, and visitors of both worlds were visiting each other quite often."

Usagi listened in awe. "You are very knowledgeable."

Sabrina smiled. "I've been studying. I've always been interested in the ancient Moon Kingdom and the impact it had on our world."

"But what happened to cause our two worlds to drift apart from each other like this?" Usagi wondered.

"Can't you guess?" Sabrina asked. "It was because of a dark menace that threatened the Moon Kingdom... and in the end, caused its destruction."

Usagi looked down at the floor. "Metallia..." she whispered.

Sabrina nodded. "Yes. And so, you and your friends are the last remaining people on Earth that know about the Moon Kingdom. Before Metallia's forces invaded, Queen Serenity made sure to seal away all passageways that lead to Kanto... and they remained closed, until..."

"Until Lord Oak needed help from the moon princess and brought Ash into our world," Usagi sighed. She shook her head. "I... I know what they expect of me, but... I'm not too sure if I can do it."

"You are horrified of what happened earlier this day," Sabrina assumed.

Usagi nodded. "Yes, that blonde Rocketeer girl... Giovanni seemed to be pretty upset about her death..." She wrapped her arms around herself and groaned. "Just like I am..."

"It wouldn't be any better if it had been anyone else who met his demise back then," Sabrina said. "Death is never a nice thing. But I believe you already understood that it is important to make a decision every now and then. Looks like the ghosts of Lavender Castle were right."

"About what?" Usagi asked in confusion.

"That you could be the one. They say that one day, someone will come who will free them from their ghostly existence."

"And I'm supposed to be that person?" Usagi sounded skeptical.

"Well, you might be the one," Sabrina said with a smile. "Even I can't look into the future, you know? But they say it's supposed to be a wanderer between the worlds, and a member of royalty."

"That also applies for Ash," Usagi pointed out.

"That's true," Sabrina nodded. "But you know, Ash didn't quite tell you everything about the ghosts of Lavender... He told you that they have turned into ghosts because of the Rocketeer's attack. But that's only one part of the story. What happened to them was the punishment for what they did in the past."

Usagi understood right away. "Rayquaza..."

"Yes," Sabrina said. "Rayquaza! They were summoning the dragon, but the force they called upon was more powerful than the one that called it. The dragon burned down their enemies, but he didn't leave, and they couldn't contain him anymore. And he almost had been able to destroy all of Kanto."

"But they did beat it, right?" Usagi asked.

"Well, we wouldn't be standing here if they didn't," Sabrina smirked. "But yes, they found a way, but don't ask me how they did it. They managed to subdue it, but for a big price. The dragon's curse hit them. They would never again find peace and were cursed to roam the halls of Lavender Castle forever."

"Eternal life? That doesn't sound like a curse," Usagi said, blinking.

"And yet it was one," Sabrina replied. "Rayquaza cursed them with immortality, but it was an eternity of terror, as they could never leave their castle and were forced to relive their most horrible moments in life again and again. But, there might be a way for them to atone for what they did. They might find eternal peace when they get the chance to help save Kanto from a disastrous threat. Just like you."

Usagi knew what the psychic meant, but she didn't reply. So Sabrina continued:

"Ash showed you the Burning Plains. He told you what happened after the dragon was summoned. But what Lord Oak is going to show you won't be much less horrifying. You don't have the choice between the dragon and peace, Sailor Moon! You have the choice between the fire of the dragon and the fire of the Rocketeers... and that burns just as blazing as that of Rayquaza."

"So... you want to tell me that I should help Lord Oak?" Usagi asked.

"I'm only saying that you have to choose carefully, but the choice is still yours. I'm just here to help you with the decision, not to make it for you."

"And if I make a mistake?" Usagi asked unconfidantly. She didn't like the situation she was in one bit. It wasn't fair... should she really risk the destruction of Kanto, to save it from the Rocketeers?

"Just listen to the voice of your conscience, and you will make the right decision," Sabrina said. Her voice was full of confidence. "I know you can do it. And now, we should get some rest, especially you. You have still a long journey ahead of you, until you reach Pallet Castle." She then looked at her guest inquiringly. "Or have you changed your mind?"

"No, I'm still going to Pallet Castle," Usagi said. "That much I promised to Lord Oak."

Sabrina nodded. "Very well... in that case, I have a present for you." She stood up and walked over to a bureau, where she pulled a shiny item out of a drawer.

Usagi accepted the circular object from the psychic woman. It was a metal ring, shimmering like silver, with various adornments that were looking similar to the decorations on her own weapons... the Moon Tiara, the Moon Rod and the Holy Grail, for instance.

"What's this?" she whispered.

"This is the Moon Chakram," Sabrina explained. "It is one of the artifacts from the ancient Moon Kingdom that stayed behind in Kanto, before Queen Serenity sealed off the pathways between our worlds. I know you are already a capable fighter, especially alongside your friends, and that you don't like to hurt anyone... but please, take it with you. It will be a dangerous journey, and it is more than just a weapon. It will be able to protect you. But remember that this is more than just a fancy piece of metal... misuse the Moon Chakram's powers, and it will turn against you."

Sailor Moon grabbed the Moon Chakram with both her hands and nodded. "Thank you again, Sabrina! I think your advice really helped me. And I will think about you every time I'll use the Chakram."

"That's good to hear," Sabrina smiled. "And now, time for bed! As I said, It's gonna be a long journey for all of you."

* * *

Author's Note:

For all your information, this story is unfinished and will stay until I've heard at least a couple of more positive comments from more readers. Even if that happens, I will have to contemplate if I further continue this.

Thanks for understanding!


End file.
